An Island of Peace within One's Soul

Howard Thurman possesses such an eloquent and significant way to engage his readers. "An Island of Peace within One's Soul." It's just a simple phrase; seven words. Yet it causes the follower of Christ to not only reflect but to put his/her life under self-examination. One is compelled to ask certain questions.

"Do I have an island of peace in my soul?"

"Is an island of peace set aside for the spiritually elite?"

"Is this another example of a feathery statement which has so many interpretations that it really has no meaning at all?"

I believe Thurman has touched on something that is often diluted by safe Christianity; the 'version' that doesn't require much risk and exists at the convenience of the believer.

How true it is that we exist to be transformed. We exist to be formed into the likeness of Christ. We have unfortunately been taught that peace is just an immediate (and automatic) byproduct of our acceptance of Christ. I'm not so sure.

An island of peace in a person's soul is something that must be worked at over time. It truly is about the stability of the Christian. As Thurman writes, "the only possibility of stability for the person is to establish this island of peace. Here one brings for review the purposes and dreams to which one's life is tied."

And within this island is a temple. The temple where God dwells. (hang in there with me.) And it is not the God of the creed, the church, the family, but the God of one's heart. How terrible it is when people never find their island of peace. As a result, they never find their true home.

Some of Thurman's thoughts could be taken as just one more example of the me, me, me approach to our faith. Some may criticize and say, "Our faith is not only about ourselves. There are wrongs to be righted, the poor to be fed, injustices reversed, and responsibilities to own up to."

But let's not neglect the importance of the nurturing of our own soul. Even in our noisy world, there is a door to God that is found through complete silence and a reflection that lays it all out before God. And it takes silence to discover and explore the island. I can't remember who said it but, "Find the door of your heart and there you will find the Kingdom of God."

Should be required viewing...

Nothing challenges my faith more than the reality of war. My desire is to be a pacifist but I admit I am far from it. Jesus was a pacifist. Therefore, I know that his followers should follow his teachings of peace. But I confess that I can't resolve my personal conflict between his teachings of peace and "The Necessary War."

I believe it is my own fear that drives my inability to refer to myself as being anti-war. I fear that the minute I declare a pacifist view that I will be completely unable to live up to it.

Before anyone makes a judgement of my words or decides to label me a...whatever, you must see Ken Burns documentary, The War. Just when I think I have theological answers I am reminded of the world of the 1940's.

I think my troubles began again when this sweet elderly lady from Mobile, Alabama said that the invention of the atomic bomb was the greatest idea ever. And then she laughed in a sweet little voice as if to tell all other generations that its necessity was a reality that others will never be able to understand.

She is right. Unless you were there...you can't understand. And to go on with insincere pacifist talk is to dilute her experience as trivial. I use the word "insincere' because I know that I haven't quite adopted a theology of a peacable kingdom. I only sound like it from the pulpit. I would love to resolve this personal, theological conflict but I just don't have enough answers to criticize anyone who thought that America's involvement in the Second World War was necessary and good. I've tried to sit back and pray for peace and remain unmoved in my hope that the truth of the resurrection of Christ will make all things better. Is this all a Christ-follower is to do? It is impossible for me to watch a documentary like this and not be horrified and patriotic at the same time. It is impossible for me to not imagine a promised peacable kingdom but also root for our American marines at the same time.

Let me be clear. I believe in a better world to come when horrors like WWII won't happen. My hope is only found in the truth that the resurrection demonstrated that death won't win in God's Kingdom. Flannery O'Conner said something like this, "By the time our spiritual house is in order...we'll be dead. We will make our way though life but it will often be in darkness. And faith will never clear anything up. It is trust...never certainty."

I hope that God can move me to a point where I have answers for terrible realities like war. And more importantly, what the Christian response should be about such things. I'm just not there yet. I will pray for peace, I will hope for peace, and I will LOVE peace. I will hate violence, hate all war, and oppose it when our sword is not wielded well. And for now I will both despise what happened from 1941-1945 and also praise the ones who had to endure it.