Magnifica Humanitas

All of us, at every level, can contribute to building the foundation of peace, which is justice. We do not merely seek any kind of peace — such as an absence of conflict at any cost — but instead, the true peace born of justice. “There exists a very close connection between the justice of the individual and the peace of everyone.” ^{190Saint John Paul II, Message for the 31st World Day of Peace, (1 January 1998), 1: AAS 90 (1988), 147.} Commenting on the psalm verse “justice and peace have embraced” ( Ps 84:11), Saint Augustine wrote: “There is no one who shuns the desire for peace, yet not everyone is willing to practice justice… But perform the works of justice, keeping in mind that justice and peace have embraced; they are not at odds with one another. Why do you set yourself against justice? Here, for example, is justice telling you not to steal, but you pay no heed; not to commit adultery, and you turn a deaf ear; not to do to others what you would not want done to yourself; not to say about your neighbor the things you would not want said about yourself… Do you therefore wish to attain peace? Then practice justice!” ^{191Saint Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos, 84, 12: CCSL 39, Turnhout 1956, 1172-1173.} Let us never grow weary of seeking justice!