Be Shalom, Be Peace

We all desperately want peace — within ourselves, in our relationships, in our families, in our workplaces, in our organizations, in our communities, in our country, in the world.

That is why shalom is such an oft-repeated word. For, even as a simple greeting, it embodies deep yearning and solemn promise.

So the ancient sage Hillel insisted that it is not enough to simply want peace, to hope for peace, even to pray for peace; he taught us to "love peace and actively pursue peace" (Avot 1:12).

In a world that seems so filled with strife, in a country that seems so filled with dissension, in our families, which are so often beset with contention, in our souls, which so often swirl in conflict and dis-ease, how do we bring about shalom?

We begin with the root word of shalom, shalem, which means 'Whole" or "complete."

Peace comes not when there is diffusion or fragmentation, not when there is emptiness or hollowness, but when there is wholeness, fullness, unity of being. Peace comes to each of us when we feel solid at the core, when we feel inner contentment, inner harmony.

And when there is peace within, it radiates from each person and spreads ouWvard to every other human being, and ripples to every corner of the earth. Nations do not make wars, governments do not make wars, presidents and generals do not make wars. People make wars; somebody's daddy or mommy or grandpa makes a war. Wars happen when hatred or bigotry or contention or fear — lack of wholeness — resides in a person's heart and soul and then gets translated into government policy and, eventually, international conflict.

From the simplest human interaction to the most complex multi-national negotiation, whether as a nation, a community, or as individuals, when we fill up our souls, when we fill up our hearts, when we fill up our beings — when we are not hollow and empty, but whole and complete — then shalom comes.

by Wayne Dosick