Reverend Marco Ste-Marie

The Lie of Vengeance and the Call to Peace

Violence always wants the last word.
It takes a wound and multiplies it. It takes grief and makes it rage. We saw this again when Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during a public event. A wife lost her husband. Children lost their father. A family was torn apart.

And what is the world’s first reaction? Anger. Vengeance. Retaliation. “Get even.” “Show strength.” “Hit back.”

But vengeance is a liar. It tells you that you are in control. It tells you that you have power. But in truth, it only keeps the fire burning.

As followers of Jesus, we must hear another word. The word of peace. The word of love. The word of life.

And let me be clear from the beginning: peace is not passivity.
Peace is not standing aside while injustice runs rampant.
Peace is not being a doormat.

Peace, as Jesus taught it, is an active choice to confront evil without becoming evil ourselves.

And I want to remind us that peacemakers—active, courageous peacemakers—are the ones Jesus calls children of God.

we live in a violent world. But violence will not save us. Vengeance will not heal us. Anger will not lead us to God.

So let us put away the sword. Refuse the lie of vengeance. Live as peacemakers. Because peacemakers—those who refuse passivity and pursue justice with compassion—will be called children of God.

This way is not easy. There are no simple answers, no quick fixes.

It is a journey—complex, demanding, costly. But what matters most is that we embark on the journey.

So I say to you today, with as much clarity and conviction as I can: Choose peace. Not the peace of avoidance, but the peace of action. Not passivity, but courage. Not vengeance, but justice wrapped in love.

Blessed are the peacemakers. For they—no one else—will be called children of God.