Pope John Paul II made an urgent appeal for peace in his Easter message Urbi et Orbi (To the City and to the World), which took as its theme the greeting addressed by the Risen Lord to the disciples on the first Easter evening.

“His message can be summarized in two words: Pax vobis – Peace be with you!” said the Holy Father. “His peace is the fruit of the victory over sin and death which he gained at a high price.”

“The peace which is the gift of the Risen Christ is deep and complete, and reconciles man with God, with himself and with creation,” he continued. “Many religions proclaim that peace is a gift from God. We saw this again at the recent meeting in Assisi. May all the world's believers join their efforts to build a more just and fraternal humanity; may they work tirelessly to ensure that religious convictions may never be the cause of division and hatred, but only and always a source of brotherhood, harmony and love.”

Turning then to the situation in the Holy Land, which exploded in violence during Holy Week, the Pope declared, his voice rising: “It seems that war has been declared on peace!”

“But nothing is resolved by war, it only brings greater suffering and death,” he said. “No one can remain silent and inactive; no political or religious leader! Denunciation must be followed by practical acts of solidarity that will help everyone to rediscover mutual respect and to return to frank negotiation.”

At the Easter Vigil, the Holy Father had spoken about another explosion.

“An explosion of light, which God's word brought forth from nothing, rent asunder the first night, the night of Creation,” he said in his homily. “Another night constitutes the fundamental event of the history of Israel: It is the wondrous Exodus from Egypt, the story of which is read each year at the solemn Easter Vigil … This is the second night, the night of the Exodus.”

“On this most holy night, when Christ rose from the dead, you too will experience a spiritual ‘exodus,’” the Holy Father said, addressing the nine people he was about to baptize. “Leave behind your former life and enter the ‘land of the living.’ This is the third night, the night of the Resurrection.”

The two sentiments are not unrelated.

To look at the situation of the world in merely human terms is to see aggressors at each other's throats and to see war as the only possible answer. But from a supernatural vantage point, war isn't the answer — it's a large part of the problem.

The Pope's peace proscription is this: “No peace without justice, no justice without forgiveness.” A call to forgiveness in a world exploding in war sounds naive and too easy.

It is, in fact, eminently realistic — and extremely difficult. Peace will not be possible without forgiveness, after all. And what will be more difficult for Catholics to promote than that?

It is providential that the Feast of Divine Mercy has become an official part of the Church's calendar. The whole Church will be looking to the one place possible to find the extraordinary power that is necessary to forgiveness: The heart of the risen Christ.