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Michael J. Brooks

The Jimmy Carter administration faced a number of challenges, but arguably the high-water mark of achievement was the Camp David Peace Accords between Egypt and Israel.

Carter invited Prime Minister Menachem Begin and President Anwar Sadat to the presidential retreat to discuss some 50 issues remaining from the war of 1967. The anticipated several days became nearly two weeks and was beset with problems. Both men grew angry and threatened to leave. Carter summoned Vice President Walter Mondale to Camp David on Day 10 to help him decide how to terminate the talks without political fall-out.

But agreement came on Day 13鈥攁 peace treaty that remains.

Addressing the U.S. Congress, Carter honored his two guests in the gallery and quoted scripture, 鈥淏lessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.鈥�

In 1981, Sadat first visited Great Britain, and then came to the USA where he talked with a new American president, Ronald Reagan. Then he traveled to the tiny hamlet of Plains, Ga. to visit his friend, Jimmy Carter.

The citizens of Plains made Aug. 9 鈥淪adat Day.鈥� The Egyptian president was greeted by a delegation from Georgia sister city, Cairo (though the Georgians pronounce it 鈥淜AY-ro鈥�). A good time was had by all.

However, eight weeks later, President Sadat was assassinated in Cairo, Egypt at age 62.

Making peace in our broken world can be tough.

Kipling wrote, 鈥淢en are like islands, and we shout to each other across seas of misunderstanding.鈥�

Yet Jesus called his disciples to peacemaking.

Immediately there鈥檚 a debate about pacifism. Some Christians, including our Anabaptist ancestors, committed to pacifism. However, Martin Luther and others argued for the 鈥渏ust war.鈥� This happens, Luther said, when our families are threatened with harm and we鈥檝e exhausted all means to resolution.

But it鈥檚 also true that peacemaking doesn鈥檛 just happen on the world stage. Peacemaking begins in our backyards.

The apostle Paul exhorted Roman Christians, 鈥淚f it be possible, live in peace with all men鈥� (Romans 15:18).

Writer Ken Sande told about meeting two Christian men who had terrible disagreement. As a last resort they agreed to sit with him. Sande asked, 鈥淲hat in this disagreement will bring honor to God?鈥� He was met with silence, for the men knew the only way God was to be honored was through reconciliation.

Jesus pronounced a two-fold blessing on the peacemakers. First, they will be awarded happiness. They will be 鈥渂lessed,鈥� as the familiar beatitude states.

But he also asserted that they would be known as God鈥檚 children.

Children bear resemblance to their parents through DNA and chromosomes.

Christians of good will demonstrate they鈥檙e in the spiritual family of God the Father and his son, Jesus.

鈥淩eflections鈥� is a weekly faith column written by Michael J. Brooks, pastor of the Siluria Baptist Church, Alabaster, Alabama. The church鈥檚 website is siluriabaptist.com.