Peace Doves is a mass-participation artwork created by sculptor, Peter Walker
Peace is something we all long for – peace within ourselves, our relationships and our world – and yet we know that peace is not always easy to find and that to live lives of peace takes hope, courage and a commitment to working together across our differences. As Christians we talk about the ‘deep peace that passes all understanding’, which we find when our lives are centred in God’s love for our world. This is the peace we hope and pray for.
It is therefore a delight to be hosting Peter Walker’s Peace Doves installation here at Lincoln Cathedral – a vision of peace created by all of us, across our city and county, gathering our hopes and prayers for peace and creating out of them a beautiful piece of art to remind us of what we can achieve when we work together to create peace in our communities and our world.
In Christian tradition, the dove is one of the symbols for the Holy Spirit; the aspect of God which moves in and through creation – inspiring, supporting and sustaining life. At the very beginning of the Bible, in Genesis, we hear of God’s Spirit hovering over the waters of creation, and in the Gospels we hear of God’s Spirit ‘descending like a dove’ at Jesus’ baptism.
In the letter to the Galatians, we hear Paul describe the fruits of God’s Spirit (that is, the way we can tell if something reflects God’s hope for the world) as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Peace isn’t simply the absence of conflict, but rather it is something that grows through a hands-on commitment to finding ways to live together across our differences and disagreements. Each of us has a part to play in building communities of peace – what practical things you can do to build peace in your communities?
As you write on your message of peace on your dove, you may like to pray one of the following prayers:
May each one of us know
peace of mind and heart,
peace of body and spirit,
peace of community and world.
Holy Spirit of Peace, grant our prayer. Amen.
God of peace,
whose son Jesus Christ taught us
to love you and to love our neighbour as ourselves,
give your love to all of us who pray for peace –
peace that will transform,
peace that will heal,
peace that will last,
for the sake of the same Jesus Christ,
the Prince of Peace.
Amen.
