“Peace is much more than the mere absence of war. Peace requires the simple but powerful recognition that what we have in common as human beings is more important and crucial than what divides us. [...] Now more than ever, we depend on one another for our very existence! We are not just Americans, or Jews, or Muslims, or Catholics, or rich, or poor, or famous, or obscure. [...] We must realize now that our children and grandchildren will be confronting a world of stark choices: peace or death. As for me, for my children, my wife, and my friends, I choose peace; for all peoples in all the world.”
Our Quote of the Week is an affirmation that for peace to be sustained, we must recognize each other’s humanity and respect our interconnectedness. It also reminds us of the life-and-death stakes of ignoring our connection to each other.
Sargent Shriver spoke these words during the Speech at the National Peace Corps Association’s 41st Annual Celebration Dinner. Although he had reached the age of 86 and his leadership of the Peace Corps was four decades behind him, his optimism, energy, and enthusiasm are as infectious in this speech as they were early in his tenure as Director of the Peace Corps. Nevertheless, Shriver does not mince words when it comes to describing the risks of not pursuing sustained peace. He emphasizes that, in our modern world, not choosing peace could result in death—that of others as well as our own. In the 23 years since Sargent Shriver spoke these words, armed conflicts, climate change, and a pandemic, have all shown us the deadly toll of ignoring our connection to each other as human beings.
We reflect on these words with hope and with caution today as we watch the events unfolding in Israel and Gaza. With a ceasefire in place and the return of hostages, the region and the world have taken a sure step forward toward peace. But, as Sargent Shriver reminds us, we cannot really obtain peace without the recognition that we are all human and we are all connected—and act accordingly.
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