Dash of Thought June 2026

Peacemaking
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. (Mt 5:9)
Wars, terrorism, hybrid violence, attacks in violation of international law, crumbling social orders, and the exploitation of fear define our present – and trigger a sense of powerlessness. What can we, as individuals and as a church, possibly do about it? Should we simply give up? Well, the longing for peace is much more comprehensive and by no means limited to the situations and regions of this earth that are reported on day after day in the media. That is why the question also arises for followers of Jesus and for his church: What does it mean to commit to peace in the world in which we live?
The Council of the Protestant Church in Switzerland has outlined a Christian peace ethic (only available in German and French) in just a few pages, which, for me, opens up a perspective for addressing these difficult questions. It is guided by “just peace” (see Question 2). 
In the Bible, peace/shalom is much more than the absence of war. Peace is a comprehensive order of coexistence grounded in justice, freedom, protection, and equity. Only social and international justice makes it possible. Four elements are important: protection from violence, the promotion of freedom, the reduction of inequalities, and a peace-promoting approach to diversity. Protection from violence is the foundation. For only on the basis of security can civil liberties and social justice grow sustainably. 
The focus is on “peacebuilding”. This means working with all one’s strength and by all means to shape peace even in times of peace and to ensure that people can live justly. Where people are protected from violence, freedom is possible, inequalities are reduced, and differences do not turn into hostility—there peace grows.
Military means are conceivable only as “force to uphold the law” under the strictest criteria and as a very last resort to ward off massive injustice. The Social Principles of the UMC put it this way: “We reject the use of war as an instrument of foreign policy and insist that every peaceful and diplomatic means of conflict resolution be exhausted before the start of armed conflicts.” The overarching goal remains the establishment of an international legal order that replaces the law of the strongest with the strength of the law. 
Building peace—that is what we do when, as believers and as a church—imbued with God’s peace and guided by the Holy Spirit—we courageously advocate for protection from violence, the promotion of freedom, the elimination of inequalities, and reconciled diversity. 
 
Bishop Stefan Zürcher
 
 
Photo: Urs Schweizer