Messenger and Message: Honking for Peace

[In Memory of Honkers Len and Carol Montie] 

…for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,…to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

      – Luke: 76b, 79  (NRSV)

There was a time some years ago when my church had an active “peace group.” Granted, it was small and somewhat isolated from the congregation’s mainstream but we took seriously our belief in Christ’s message of peace. We sponsored several forums and events but the response was modest. I confess that I was never among the most dedicated activists of our group; I have always been cautious in my own risk-taking. But I believed in our responsibility for a peaceful world and I was inspired by the others. We tried.

However, over a fairly short time our little peace group dwindled and lost its “critical mass.” We came to feel that we were ineffective in playing a meaningful role in the life of our congregation—and we faltered in our ability and will to create and sustain new initiatives. And so we agreed to stop trying, at least for the time being.

But, lo and behold (and here comes the good part!), our little group didn’t quite shrink away and die. The bonds linking us had become too meaningful to become unraveled, and we did not want to lose each other in this special relationship around common concern for the world. We cared deeply and were personally and corporately strengthened by each other. We knew we had the core of something worth sustaining. So we just kept gathering monthly without organization, church sanction or formal purpose.

We now have been nurtured in a closely-knit group for something like eighteen years.

We have lived through serious illnesses and family stress (including the deaths of our two best “peaceniks”), celebrated weddings,  births and the good things of life, and watched two special children grow up in our midst. But we also remain united in our search for the one who Zechariah promised will “guide our feet into the way of peace.” We continue to spend much of our monthly supper discussing the painful unpeaceful reality that is, and we encourage each other to make a difference in confronting the world’s agony and need.

It has been wonderful for us all, but—perhaps not enough. I think it is probably time that we become an identifiable peace group once again. I would like to believe that we have been sustained all these years not only for ourselves but for greater purpose. Somehow we have always known that. We have called ourselves “The Honkers,” the symbol of the geese at the rear of the flying “V” who encourage all those united in a common journey. The way of peace, I think, requires some serious honking on the journey—honking by Honkers like us. Advent is a good time to bring it up at our next supper.