314 lines
11 KiB
Plaintext
314 lines
11 KiB
Plaintext
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PEACE
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Peace is one of the most desirable fruits of salvation in all the
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world's religions. We begin with passages describing the fruit of inner
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peace. The peace that comes with reaching Ultimate Reality brings
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tranquillity to the heart and clarity to the mind. It is the absence of
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passions, desires, anxieties, and wandering thoughts; the heart becomes
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cool and content. Nirvana is often translated 'Peace.' Islam and
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Christianity both praise the peace and tranquillity that come to the soul
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that is firm in faith. The soul of the saint has been likened to a deep
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pond whose surface remains undisturbed by waves despite the many currents
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or streams that flow into it.
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A second group of passages describe the peace of God that brings
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harmony among people and nations. Outward peace is emphasized in the
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Abrahamic faiths, for whom the work of God has a social and historical
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dimension. The love of God breaks down the walls of hostility between
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people, and thus becomes the foundation for their lasting peace. Yet
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peace in this social and political sense is not only given by God; it must
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also be built by the efforts of human beings. Those who are blessed with
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inner peace have the responsibility to become peacemakers, reconciling
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conflict.
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Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do
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I give to you.
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Christianity. Bible, John 14.27
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In the remembrance of God do hearts find satisfaction.
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Islam. Qur'an 13.28
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The Master said, "In the morning, hear the Way; in the evening, die
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content!"
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Confucianism. Analects 4.8
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This is peace, this is the excellent, namely the calm of all the impulses,
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the casting out of all "basis," the extinction of craving, dispassion,
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stopping, Nirvana.
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Buddhism. Anguttara Nikaya v.322
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O tranquil soul,
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return to your Lord
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so pleasant and well-pleased!
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Enter among My servants
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and enter My garden!
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Islam. Qur'an 89.27-30
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May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.
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Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Numbers 6.26
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And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your
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hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
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Christianity. Bible, Philippians 4.7
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He it is who sent down peace of reassurance into the hearts of the
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believers, that they might add faith to their faith.
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Islam. Qur'an 48.4
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Thou dost keep him in perfect peace,
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whose mind is stayed on thee,
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because he trusts in thee.
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Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Isaiah 26.3
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If a man sings of God and hears of Him,
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And lets love of God sprout within him,
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All his sorrows shall vanish,
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And in his mind, God will bestow abiding peace.
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Sikhism. Adi Granth, Japuji 5, M.1, p. 2
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Anguttara Nikaya v.322: Nirvana is the Ultimate Good because it is the
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complete end of all the impulses and passions that produce evil. Cf.
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Dhammapada 96, p. 230. Qur'an 89.27-30: Cf. Qur'an 56.27, p. 353.
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Numbers 6.26: Part of the Aaronic benediction, Numbers 6.24-26, p. 56.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Just as a deep lake is clear and still, even so, on hearing the teachings
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and realizing them, the wise become exceedingly peaceful.
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Buddhism. Dhammapada 82
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As rivers flow into the ocean but cannot make the vast ocean overflow, so
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flow the streams of the sense-world into the sea of peace that is the
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sage.
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Hinduism. Bhagavad Gita 2.70
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Men do not mirror themselves in running water--they mirror themselves in
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still water. Only what is still can still the stillness of other things.
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Taoism. Chuang Tzu 5
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The monk looks for peace within himself, and not in any other place. For
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when a person is inwardly quiet, there is nowhere a self can be found;
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where, then, could a non-self be found?
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There are no waves in the depths of the sea; it is still, unbroken. It is
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the same with the monk. He is still, without any quiver of desire,
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without a remnant on which to build pride and desire.
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Buddhism. Sutta Nipata 919-20
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The Lord lives in the heart of every creature. He turns them round and
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round upon the wheel of his Maya. Take refuge utterly in Him. By His
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grace you will find supreme peace, and the state which is beyond all
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change.
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Hinduism. Bhagavad Gita 18.61-62
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Should anyone be victim of great anxiety, his body racked with maladies,
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Beset with problems of home and family, With pleasure and pain
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alternating, Wandering in all four directions without peace or rest--
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Should he then contemplate the Supreme Being, Peaceful shall his mind and
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body become.
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Sikhism. Adi Granth, Sri Raga, M.5, p. 70
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Dhammapada 82: Cf. Anguttara Nikaya iii.34, p. 531; Dhammapada 413, pp.
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231f. Bhagavad Gita 2.70: Cf. Bhagavad Gita 6.7-9, p. 226. Chuang Tzu 5:
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Only a person at peace with himself can calm others. Cf. Tao Te Ching 4,
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p. 525; Great Learning, p. 842; Tao Te Ching 56, p. 840. Sutta Nipata
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919-920: Cf. Dhammapada 279, p. 899. The peace which comes from finding
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union in the midst of the world's bewildering diversity is also expressed
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in the Peace Chant of the Isha Upanishad, p. 55. Cf. Katha Upanishad
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3.13, p. 840, Bhagavad Gita 5.10-12, p. 724. On the wheel of Maya, see
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Svetasvatara Upanishad 1.6.8, p. 398.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Victory breeds hatred, for the defeated live in pain. Happily live the
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peaceful, giving up victory and defeat.
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Buddhism. Dhammapada 201
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Tao invariably takes no action, and yet there is nothing left undone. If
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kings and barons can keep it, all things will transform spontaneously. If,
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after transformation, they should desire to be active, I would restrain
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them with simplicity, which has no name. Simplicity, which has no name, is
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free of desires. Being free of desires, it is tranquil. And the world will
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be at peace of its own accord.
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Taoism. Tao Te Ching 37
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Some children were playing beside a river. They made castles of sand, and
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each child defended his castle and said, "This one is mine." They kept
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their castles separate and would not allow any mistakes about which was
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whose. When the castles were all finished, one child kicked over someone
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else's castle and completely destroyed it. The owner of the castle flew
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into a rage, pulled the other child's hair, struck him with his fist and
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bawled out, "He has spoiled my castle! Come along all of you and help me
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to punish him as he deserves." The others all came to his help. They beat
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the child with a stick and then stamped on him as he lay on the ground....
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Then they went on playing in their sand castles, each saying, "This is
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mine; no one else may have it. Keep away! Don't touch my castle!" But
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evening came, it was getting dark and they all thought they ought to be
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going home. No one now cared what became of his castle. One child
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stamped on his, another pushed his over with both hands. Then they turned
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away and went back, each to his home.
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Buddhism Yogacara Bhumi Sutra 4
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Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!
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Christianity. Bible, Luke 2.14
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The whole of the Torah is for the purpose of promoting peace.
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Judaism. Talmud, Gittin 59b
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Dhammapada 201: Cf. Nitivaktyamrita 344, p. 1052. Tao Te Ching 37: Cf.
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Chuang Tzu 7, p. 588; Tao Te Ching 80, p. 291. Yogacara Bhumi Sutra 4: In
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this parable Nirvana is likened to the diminution of jealousy and passion
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for existence with the cool of evening. In the Pali version (Samyutta
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Nikaya iii.188) the sand castles are likened to the body, which had been
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the object of grasping; with Release it becomes a thing to be disregarded
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and broken up. Luke 2.14: The proclamation of the angelic hosts at the
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birth of Jesus, the Prince of Peace; see the larger passage Luke
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1.26-2:14, p. 596. Cf. Yasna 60.5, p. 289.
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All things exist for world peace.
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Perfect Liberty Kyodan Precepts, 14
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God is peace, His name is peace, and all is bound together in peace.
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Judaism. Zohar, Leviticus 10b
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For Christ Jesus is our peace, who has made us both one, and has broken
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down the dividing wall of hostility.
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Christianity. Bible, Ephesians 2.14
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Our Father, it is thy universe, it is thy will:
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Let us be at peace, let the souls of the people be cool.
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Thou art our Father, remove all evil from our path.
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African Traditional Religions. Nuer Prayer (Sudan)
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They shall beat their swords into plowshares,
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and their spears into pruning hooks;
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nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
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neither shall they learn war any more.
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Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Isaiah 2.4
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Now is the gracious Lord's ordinance promulgated,
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No one shall cause another pain or injury;
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All mankind shall live in peace together,
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Under a shield of administrative benevolence.
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Sikhism. Adi Granth, Sri Raga, M.5, p. 74
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Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
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Christianity. Bible, Matthew 5.9
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He brings together those who are divided, he encourages those who are
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friendly; he is a peacemaker, a lover of peace, impassioned for peace, a
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speaker of words that make for peace.
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Buddhism. Digha Nikaya xiii.75, Tevigga Sutta
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Precepts, 14: A sentiment common to most of the new religions of Japan.
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Zohar, Leviticus 10b: In Hebrew, shalom includes the concepts peace,
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wellness, and wholeness. Cf. Numbers 6.24-26, p. 56; the Kaddish prayer,
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p. 54. Ephesians 2.14: Cf. John 17.20-21, p. 271; Atharva Veda 7.52.1-2,
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pp. 272f. Matthew 5.9: Cf. Abot 1.12, p. 239.
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If two parties of believers fall to fighting, then make peace between
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them. And if one party of them does wrong to the other, fight that
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wrong-doer until it returns to the ordinance of God; then, if it returns,
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make peace between them justly, and act equitably. Lo! God loves the
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equitable.
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Islam. Qur'an 49.9
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During the short eons of swords,
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They meditate on love,
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Introducing to nonviolence
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Hundreds of millions of living beings.
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In the midst of great battles
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They remain impartial to both sides;
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For bodhisattvas of great strength
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Delight in reconciliation of conflict.
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Buddhism. Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti 8
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Peace be to earth and to airy spaces!
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Peace be to heaven, peace to the waters,
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peace to the plants and peace to the trees!
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May all the gods grant me peace!
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By this invocation of peace may peace be diffused!
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By this invocation of peace may peace bring peace!
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With this peace the dreadful I appease,
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with this peace the cruel I appease,
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with this peace all evil I appease,
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so that peace may prevail, happiness prevail!
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May everything for us be peaceful!
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Hinduism. Atharva Veda 19.9.14
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