again. The point is, peace is a gift; and, in order for any gift to be received, it must first be given. Further, in order to fully acquire and enjoy any gift, deriving the most possible benefit from it, we must be open to receiving it. The thing we need to get into our heads, is that God is the giver of peace. We must purposefully and with sincerity go to God in prayer and live our life in right relationship to him in order to fully receive his wondrous gifts, which include peace. God is the origin and source of all good gifts. If we want peace, our focus and energy and desires must be ordered toward the love of God for his sake. It is in turning to God, completely and wholly, that the doorway to true, authentic and indescribable peace is unlatched.

Pope Benedict points out that God is always on the side of peace because his only Son, Jesus Christ who is the perfect revelation of the Father's love, spoke in the beatitudes of a blessedness that "consists in the fulfillment of a promise made to all those who allow themselves to be guided by the requirements of truth, justice and love," which are all prerequisites for peace. This promise is, ultimately, the promise of sharing in the supernatural life of God, a state of blessedness in which the hope that burns in the depths of our hearts is attained. Such a life is the life of peace. It begins in embracing Jesus Christ and in following him; it builds toward its fulfillment as we make the story of Christ's life our own story; and attains its fullest dimension as the elect pass through the veil of death into everlasting life and heavenly glory, forever possessing God in the Beatific Vision.

In abandoning ourselves in trust to the love of God, in nourishing and living out a sincere longing for truth, justice and love, the words of Jesus in the beatitudes become a reality for us: we discover that we "are children of God," stated Pope Benedict. In that moment, God's sons and daughters understand "that God has always been, and ever will be, completely on their side."

In that luminous and regenerative understanding, peace suddenly blooms within us as something that transcends the visible world, something permanent, sure and certain; something that cannot be taken away from us as long as we ourselves do not forfeit it through a willful turning away from God. That God is completely on our side renders all that troubles us harmless. If God is truly with us, as he is, on our side, what do we really have to fear? Like an everlasting flower, forever giving off the scent of divine sweetness, the peace granted by God will never wilt nor fade away, for it originates in the eternal Other who is its Well-Spring. The peace God gives is a supernaturally infused peace, which is infinitely greater than natural peace. As adopted children of the Father, peace becomes, then, an inseparable part of our human life rooted within us interiorly, since the Spirit who is Peace and Love is sent to dwell in us as within a temple (cf. 1 Cor 3:16), and lovingly gifts us with his own indescribable peace.

In giving ourselves over completely, unreservedly and unconditionally to Christ -- which includes loving God for his sake above all else, our neighbor as another self, and living the moral life of love in the womb of the Church in free obedience to the truth and in fidelity to divine law -- the desire for interior peace is actualized through the gift of the Spirit whose peace and love takes possession of us as his own, and fosters within us a new way of living and a new way of understanding what life is. It is as if our eyes are opened and we become fully awake and alert to the reality of God's plan of loving goodness. In that moment, a new and never-before-imagined clarity is experienced. Interior peace becomes real, certain, tangible.

The wondrous and most cherished gift of the Spirit heals, elevates and perfects us, bestowing on us the ability to live and act in ways proper to God alone. The Spirit becomes our strength, allowing us to courageously face what would otherwise be terrifying difficulties and obstacles in life. To say that the Spirit re-creates and makes us new is not merely pious talk; it is a reality for which we are all destined, provided we give ourselves in totality to God. God is truly the giver of unsurpassable gifts!

This road to God and his indescribable gift of interior peace is the journey of the spiritual life toward perfection. It is often a rather long, tortuous and difficult road, as the cross of Jesus Christ reveals. Many lose patience and give up when spiritual gifts and the perceptible, sweet consolation of God is not immediately forthcoming, preferring to enjoy the quickly and easily accessed yet fleeting and unsatisfying pleasures of the world. It is important to understand that God wants our commitment, our total love, which involves a profound interior conversion on our part. We must die to self. Progress is made by those who, praying unceasingly, humbly rely completely on Christ and refuse to give in to worldly errors. Their success is assured because God is on their side. Their hope in the promises of Christ will be realized, for the Son of God shed his blood and died in order to make them a reality.

None of this is meant in any way to imply that it is unimportant to work to obtain peace in the world. Nor is it meant to suggest we will not suffer, or that life will not bring with it its share of difficulties. But it is to say that, since we can accomplish nothing apart from Christ, it is our Savior who is the key to everlasting peace and perfect happiness and finding satisfaction in the possession of all the good things for which the mysterious human heart forever longs. As St. Teresa of Avila, the Doctor of Prayer, pointed out, Christ does not give himself completely to us until we give ourselves completely to him. It is in the possession of God that we enjoy real and lasting interior peace. It is in the possession of God that we derive the strength and wisdom to work positive change in the world in order to foster the peace for which humankind thirsts. It is through the gift of the indwelling Spirit that we are enabled to heal, elevate and perfect human culture and society, making it more the city of God than the city of man.

God is on your side! You were made to receive God's gifts of peace, happiness and love, and thereby transform the world by what you receive.

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F. K. Bartels is a Catholic writer who knows the Catholic Church transmits the fullness of truth and offers the fullest means of salvation; therefore his Catholic Faith is one of the greatest gifts a man could ever receive. He is a contributing writer for Catholic Online. Visit him also at joyintruth.com
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Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: world day of peace, pope Benedict's message of peace, interior peace, God's gift of peace, World Day of Peace, F. K. Bartels

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