Contemplation and Peace

Contemplation is the way to peace. But there are some who hold the contrary, not without good reason: for.1. Those who are entrusted with the drawing up of peace- treaties are generally men of action. And if we find much to criticise in their achievements, we can rarely doubt their goodwill and we must admit their success in establishing what all men are agreed to call peace.2. Contemplatives withdraw from the world to seek peace as the first condition for the fulfilment of their vocation.Against this we have the testimony of the Church's liturgy: Beata pads visio. That is to say, peace is achieved through a vision or contemplation.Peace is something more than concord. There is concord when one party to an agreement accepts his obligations reluctantly, but there is no peace: one desire conflicts with another, there is no tranquillity or order in his soul. Yet desire is never completely at rest until the soul is in the presence of God. A relative tranquillity can, however, be attained in this world, more or less perfect according to the degree to which we perceive that only He who created our soul can maintain its harmony. When the perception of this truth contents us we are at peace. And this is attained through contemplation.The order in the world and its tranquillity are fashioned according to a divine plan. Those who seek peace cannot therefore afford to neglect examination of the design which it is their task to realise: "They must be made to climb the ascent to the vision of Goodness, which we called the highest object of knowledge; and, allowed to remain on the heights, refusing to come down again to the prisoners

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