“…There is no goodness that is not bodily and realistic and local.”
–Rowan Williams, Where God Happens

How does the Resurrection give shape to your work of peacemaking? 

When I interviewed for the Director of Christian Engagement position at Telos, I was asked what Scripture shapes my understanding of Christian peacemaking. I quoted 2 Corinthians 5:19: 

“…in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.”

Written out by hand by a dear friend in Vienna many years ago, this text hangs in my office. My hope is that in seeing these words each day they have persistently and subtly shaped my understanding of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Specifically: following Jesus means embodying the message of reconciliation that Jesus himself is—with all its costs and risks. 

Peacemaking is essential for Christian discipleship. This is not an optional program, workshop, or class for those Christians who happen to be interested in this work; it is at the core of our vocation. 

Rev. Dr. John M. Perkins embodied the vocation of peacemaking in compelling ways, over the course of a lifetime. His luminary life shaped so many Christian leaders, from the Civil Rights movement to today. Here at Telos, we’re celebrating Dr. Perkins’ life and legacy, as well as mourning his passing. Dr. Perkins’ homegoing service recently took place at New Horizon Church in Jackson, Mississippi. You can watch it here.

Rev. Dr. Perkins recognized the central role the Church plays as Christ’s body in the ongoing, proactive work of peacemaking and nonviolence: 

“I am all for churches being a part of the nonviolent marches and protests that have happened in the wake of violent killings, but these protests happen only after a tragic event has taken place. I want the church to be what prevents these acts from ever happening. I want the church to be the community that is so dedicated to loving our neighbors, to caring for the poor and neglected, and to living out true reconciliation that these killings do not even take place.”

―John M. Perkins, Dream with Me: Race, Love, and the Struggle We Must Win

As Dr. Perkins’ life modeled, the whole of our Mosaic program—from readings and faculty seminars, to pilgrimages and gatherings—are designed to shape us into Christ’s likeness—the One who reconciles the world to God. Reconciliation is our vocation, as disciples and leaders in the body of Christianity and in our respective communities. That vocation is costly and risky today, as it has been throughout history. 

Our work of peacemaking is costly precisely because it is aligned with a Lord who persistently aligned himself with the vulnerable, the marginalized, and the forgotten—who make their way through this world unprotected.

Our work of peacemaking is risky because it is aligned with a Lord who refused to power over others, but who allowed himself to be a victim of State inflicted violence—creatively revealing the gross injustice at work, and God’s overwhelming love, faithfulness, and reconciling work in response.

But our work of peacemaking is also carried out in the immovable hope made manifest in Jesus Christ’s Resurrection: that death—and all who are endeared and compelled by the false-promises of death’s power—does not have the final word. Without looking away or minimizing the reality of death and grief, the work of true peace is not intimidated by the outbreak of war, the reality of genocide, or the seemingly unending systemic injustice plaguing our nation and others. Even as we weep with those who weep, we commit to the costly, risky work of peacemaking in our respective communities, illumined and empowered by the living hope of Jesus’ Resurrection. 

Returning from our recent Mosaic pilgrimage through Ireland / Northern Ireland, I continue to reflect on the hyperlocal nature of grief. Those who lost loved ones to the decades long psychological and physical conflict referred to as “The Troubles”—a name that fails to do justice to its ongoing impacts—recalled intimate details: names and delights of wives and daughters, concerns and dreams of husbands and sons. We were invited to walk the same streets and hear recalled the times of day in which bombs erupted, decimating the lives of individuals and communities alike—lives which cannot be put back together by even the most effective peace agreement. As hyper local and intimate as our grief is, so, too, must be our work in peacemaking and our hope for reconciliation.  

This month we have a variety of resources available to equip, inspire, and support your peacemaking efforts, which you will find below. We hope these articles, videos, and gathering opportunities encourage you in the work of Resurrection-shaped peacemaking in the particular contours, challenges, and unique opportunities of your local context. 

As the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, writes: “…There is no goodness that is not bodily and realistic and local.” The reconciliation of the world to God in Christ plays out on a cosmic stage as well as in the corners of our local neighborhoods. The reconciling story of the Lamb who was slain and enthroned is still unspooling itself, still shaping the hearts, minds, and lives of our neighbors and of ourselves. As we grieve the local, national, and international reports of violence and injustice, may we also be encouraged by the hope of Resurrection, which no amount of death-dealing can put out—thanks be to God.

Get Connected

• Watch our Mosaic Reflections on Resurrection-Informed Peacemaking

• Watch the Telos Live: Faith-in-Action Webinar Recording

• Apply to Join our Next Mosaic Cohort 2: Application window now open!

• Join us in D.C. for Telos’ Christian Leaders Gathering: “Advocating for Peace & Justice in the Fierce Urgency of Now,” June 10–12, 2026, Culture House, Washington, D.C.

Additional Resources:

• Read “The Long Trail of Violence,” Todd Deatherage’s poignant reflections on the heart-wrending nature of motherly grief in Ireland / Northern Ireland, Israel-Palestine, and the US South.
• Read a reflection from our Ireland / Northern Ireland trip with the Mosaic cohort Ryan Pemberton wrote on the power of human choices in shaping history, large and small.
• Learn more about John Perkins Legacy of Reconciliation in 10 Quotes,” by Tyler Huckabee for Sojourners
• Explore the relationship between Catholicism and Zionism in “No Catholic Brand of Christian Zionism, or Tolerance for Antisemitism,” by Jordan Denari Duffner and Julie Schumacher Cohen
• Listen to this recent episode of the On Being podcast, featuring the Parents Circle—Families Forum, a group of bereaved Palestinians and Israelis mobilizing their shared pain towards a future of peace.

Photo: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the traditional spot of Jesus’s death and resurrection.