Recently at the office we had a phone call from a young man who had been a SFOR soldier in Bosnia-Hercegovina. He was looking for possibilities to work as a civilian in Bosnia over the Christmas holidays. He wanted to do something meaningful for Christmas and was prepared to use his vacation time to do so. He said he was willing to do any kind of work and would cover his own expenses. Could I give him the name of an organisation which would accept him as a volunteer for such a time of service?

meaning and recognition. You are ... an image of God. And this is enough.

Perhaps we realise at this level why Christmas and peace and the transformation of violence into active nonviolence are so closely connected. When I begin to see the face of God in others and when I recognize that God approaches me through others, how can I take up arms against another human being? Isn't such an action truly absurd? This is a question which we should ask not only of others, but rath-

"By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."
(from Zechariah's Prophecy, Luke 1:78-79 NRSV)

I must admit that I was surprised and also a bit shamed by this phone call. It was clear to me through this young man's example that God's tender mercy becomes a reality through persons who let themselves be touched and transformed by God's love. It is God's love that Zechariah praises in his prophecy, a love which allows us to look deeper into life's mysteries, into the miracle in Bethlehem which is mirrored in every birth of a child.

Advent reminds us that it is God who takes the initiative again and again by approaching us with trust and esteem as we continue our personal search for

er first of ourselves.

According to the Bible, the hope of an end to violence and war is inseparably linked with the coming of God. Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey just as the prophet Zechariah foretold the coming of the Prince of Peace: "Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall command peace to the nations." (Zechariah 9: 9b-10)

And yet numerous civil wars rage on and the arms industry continues to receive new contracts. The production of lethal weapons remains a lucrative business. Few remember the countless dead and maimed. Daily the unspeakable abyss of human aber-ration widens before our eyes.

The contradiction between the biblical promise and ugly reality is appalling: Violence gives birth to new, even more frightening, violence. Some victims turn into perpetrators and create new victims. As I write this letter Winnie Mandela's hearing before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is taking place. Unbelievable evidence is coming to light which implicates Winnie Mandela in crimes which one would never have dreamed her capable of committing. And this is only one example.

Is the reality of our world truly leaving behind the vision of the Christmas message of peace? No. The example of the SFOR soldier and the efforts of the South African Truth and Recon-ciliation Commission to reconcile persons following a terrible past; and the numerous, often unnoticed, efforts to bring perpetrators and victims out from the shadow of death and to help them see their life in a new light; all these are signs that this message of peace is not an unattainable utopia but rather is present as God's reality in our world.

Christ is the only one who can bring these terrible experiences of human reality into the light. Into a light that reveals the truth without condemning people, a light that can make something good out of even the most confused situations. Only in this light can people be moved to admit their guilt and to seek and accept recon-ciliation.

Whoever experiences this reconciliation - whether in personal relationships or through encounters with former enemies in Belarus or Belfast or elsewhere - becomes free to walk on the path of peace. To leave the past as it stands, without becoming chained to it. And to be free to respond to God's message of healing and peace for all.

We are in fellowship with you all as we share this hope and as we wait together for the new year. We thank you for your many expressions of support, encouragement and help and for all feedback and criticism. We ask you to continue to support and assist us in our work during the year which lies ahead. And we are excited about the communities which, as new members, will enrich our peace church, ecumenical network and further our common mission in the coming year.

We wish all of you a blessed Christmas.

Christian Hohmann for the
staff of Church & Peace
trans trm