Christianity: Healing a wounded people
National peace is not the absence of protest, nor the silence that comes when fear wins. It is the presence of justice, truth, and mutual dignity. Reconciliation is not forgetting; it is remembering rightly—naming what happened, refusing denial, and choosing a future that is not held hostage by revenge.
Scripture is honest: broken relationships do not heal by pretending nothing happened. Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers” (Matt. 5:9). A peacemaker is not a bystander. Peacemaking is costly work: listening to pain without defensiveness, speaking truth without hatred, and refusing to dehumanize those on the other side. Paul teaches that Christ “is our peace… and has broken down the dividing wall” (Eph. 2:14). The dividing wall is not only physical; it is also made of suspicion, propaganda, stereotypes, and old wounds. Christ does not bless our walls; he breaks them.
National reconciliation begins with truth. Where there has been violence, displacement, discrimination, or hate, the first step is to tell the truth publicly and protect the truth-tellers. Without truth, reconciliation becomes a cheap slogan. The second step is repentance: not vague regret, but accountability—admitting wrongdoing, returning what was taken, repairing what was broken, and changing the systems that produced harm. Zacchaeus did not say “sorry” and move on; he made restitution (Luke 19:8). A nation cannot heal if those who suffered are asked to “move on” while injustice remains.
The third step is restoring trust through concrete actions: fair policing, equal protection under law, dignified rehabilitation of victims, honest education, and spaces where communities can meet without fear. “If possible… live peaceably with all” (Rom. 12:18) is not permission to ignore evil; it is a call to reject revenge and to seek the common good.
So we pray for leaders with courage, citizens with conscience, and churches that refuse hate. May God turn our grief into wisdom, and our anger into the strength to rebuild together.
