By Rosemary Daniels | Correspondent

As you drive past the meditation garden on the grounds of St. Mary Parish, Colts Neck, a keen eye can observe a white “Peace Pole” close by the beautiful statue of St. Francis of Assisi. An obelisk about the height of a fence pole, it bears the message, “May Peace Prevail on Earth,” expressed in eight different languages. This pole, one of 200,000 that have been erected in more than 200 countries in the past few years, was a fitting harbinger to the Mass for Peace that Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., celebrated in St. Mary Church Aug. 16. It was one of many celebrated around the Diocese, following the Bishop’s request that parishes celebrate a Mass for Peace the weekend of Aug. 16-17.

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In welcome remarks, Bishop O’Connell said, “Pope Francis has asked all of us to pray for peace in our world, especially in those parts that are struggling right now. But before we can offer peace, or pray for peace, we have to be at peace in ourselves and in our heart. So, as we begin, let us pray that the Lord might give us peace.”

Pope Francis’ request comes at a time of great turbulence in the Middle East, Iraq, the Ukraine and even in the United States where racial tension has led to recent riots and enforced curfews in Missouri.

In his homily, Bishop O’Connell made an apt comparison between the time of Isaiah and the current turbulence in the Middle East. “Isaiah’s time was characterized by one crisis after another. The northern kingdom of Israel was in slavery. Judah was engulfed in idolatry and evil. Assyria was a military threat and a political threat to both Kingdoms. Babylon was a threat to Assyria.”

And during this time, the followers of Isaiah wondered what had become of the promises that God had made to them, not unlike the way many people feel today, in the face of all the unrest throughout the world.

The Bishop talked about the concept of vision. Much more than what is seen, vision involves seeing what can be. A leader must be able to “connect the dots” for the people who may not be able to see past what is happening at the current moment. He used the example of the prophets of the Old Testament, saying that men like Isaiah were convinced that God was with them, and they offered to their followers a glimpse of what could and should be, if they held fast to their beliefs. Isaiah’s message to his people was simple yet reassuring, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Observe what is right, do what is just…hold to my covenant and I will bring you to my holy mountain.”

The issue of a strong faith in God was re-iterated in Matthew’s Gospel about the Canaanite woman’s pleading for Christ’s intervention with her daughter. “Bishop O’Connell noted, “Great was her faith, and God answered her prayers.”

The Bishop concluded with, “My sisters and brothers, what is the take away from all this, from the Scriptures? I believe it is this: no matter what the world looks like at any moment, see with God’s vision; no matter what your life looks like, see with God’s vision; no matter what life throws at you, see with God’s vision and remember Isaiah’s words: ‘Observe what is right; do what is just."’ Hold firm to your faith. See God and God will be there with you.”

Following the Mass, Father Jeffrey Lee, pastor, shared an insight on the turbulence taking place in various parts of the world. He said, “The Catholic unity of faith is not issue oriented but rather relationship oriented. When the ‘Body of Christ’ suffers in one part of the globe, then it suffers throughout.”

John and Janet Drudy, parishioners whose daughters Jackie, 11, and Anna, 10, were altar servers that day shared their thoughts on the Mass and the Bishop’s message. John Drudy said, “The Bishop mentioned that Pope Francis asked Catholics throughout the world to pray for peace. So I felt that we were all connected.

Janet Drudy added, “The great line that I held on to was his reminder to hold on to our faith. There’s a lot of chaos in the world. There’s a lot of senseless violence, and I found that a hopeful statement.”

Emily Santangelo, a parishioner and an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, saw a continuity with a previous Gospel message, “I thought it was very consistent with last week’s Gospel, with Peter in the boat. To me, in the last seven-eight days, it’s all about reaching for the hand of Christ and he will be there. We are not going to sink. The world is being rocked to its core, but Jesus Christ will be there to save us. We have to keep the faith.”