Paid Agitators

Choosing to be peace-makers instead of trouble-makers

05/17/2017

Acts of the Apostles 15:1-6

Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice, you cannot be saved." Because there arose no little dissension and debate by Paul and Barnabas with them, it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others should go up to Jerusalem to the Apostles and presbyters about this question.

         I believe there are two kinds of people in the world. Some people tend to be trouble-makers, while others are rather peace-makers. The first kind love to stir the pot and create conflict and controversy. Some people do this professionally, as we saw during the presidential campaign, with so-called “paid agitators,” who disrupted townhall meetings and campaign rallies. I could see this in my siblings and me when we were young. My parents often lamented, “Why is it that you three cannot be together for more than five minutes before there is turmoil and trouble??” And they were right. If we saw that we were all playing peacefully together, one of us felt it was our sworn and sacred duty to stir the pot and start a fight. Can you detect this in your own family?

         John Maxwell, the popular leadership guru, says every leader carries two buckets: one filled with water and the other with gasoline. When he or she sees a fire – a conflict or controversy – raging in the organization, they have a choice to make. Will they use the water to put out the fire and be a “firefighter,” or will they use the gasoline and cause the conflagration to become bigger? When we were little kids, we loved to throw the gasoline (all kids love to play with fire), never the water. Some people are peace-makers, others are trouble-makers.

          In the first reading today these two kinds of people exist even in the nascent Church. You would think that all Christians would naturally be peace-makers, wouldn’t you; but sadly, we’re not. In the Acts of the Apostles, one group of Christian converts constantly caused conflict and controversy. We read: “Some who were from Judea were instructing the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to Mosaic practice, you cannot be saved. [And] there arose no little dissension and debate.” This group was called the “Judaisers,” and they loved to stir the pot in the early Church, like me and my brother and sister when were young. On the other hand, Paul and Barnabas, wanted peace; they were throwing the water on the fires of conflict. In every group or gathering, you find these two kinds of people: trouble-makers and peace-makers, firefighters and fire-starters, apostles and agitators.

          My friends, let me suggest three things you can do today to be a peace-maker instead of a trouble-maker. First speak kindly about others, and if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all. Sometimes, our silence in such situations can speak volumes. The ancient proverb teachers, “the pen is mightier than the sword,” and that means don’t underestimate the power of your words, to do good and to cause harm. Weigh your words wisely; “loose lips sink ships.” Secondly, try to see the issue from the other person’s point of view. Most people are not crazy and usually have legitimate reasons for what they think and do. Even if you disagree with someone, you can still try to understand them. Just because Fr. Andrew Hart is a Cubs fan and I am a Cardinals fan, doesn’t mean he’s crazy. Wait. Sorry, that’s a bad example. Anyway, you get my point. And thirdly, pray for your persecutors, asking God to bless them. Even if you cannot love someone, you can at least pray for them. Just say one Hail Mary in the moment you feel like throwing the gasoline on them and lighting a match. All peace-makers wield prayer as a powerful weapon.

         Today, ask yourself: which kind of person am I: a peace-maker or a trouble-maker, a firefighter or a fire-starter, an apostle or an agitator. You have two buckets in your hands, which one will be empty at the end of the day?

Praised be Jesus Christ!