Devotion for the Week

Devotion based on the scripture from November 16, 2025.

Honoring Creators of Justice

This week’s gospel reading is a part of an apocalyptic speech Jesus gives in the temple. Jesus’ talk of war can be alarming to our ears. We want to hear him speak about peace and love and mercy. However, there is much in this world that is scary and violent. Jesus would not be doing his pastoral due diligence if he did not talk about these things. Jesus reminds us that, yes, things are going to get bad. But he calls us to cling to our faith and respond to God’s charge that we love and serve our neighbor. And by this, he assures us, we bring about the kingdom.

November 11 is honored as Veterans Day in the United States and Remembrance Day in Canada. Originally it was called Armistice Day to commemorate the ending of World War I and the signing of a ceasefire. It signaled the end of the violence.

An “armistice” is an agreement to stop fighting, to bring about peace. But as Martin Luther King Jr. famously observed, “Peace is not the absence of conflict but the presence of justice.” Jesus tells us that violence will happen, but our calling as baptized Christians is to live in the promise of his grace and to go out into the world to be creators of justice and peace.

This week, as we honor and remember those who have served and experienced the violence Jesus speaks of, we must heed Jesus’ pastoral words of hope: “Do not be afraid.” In the midst of chaos and fear, Jesus gives us his strength and the wisdom to follow him. Blessed are all who work toward armistice in service of peace and justice.