During my recent visit to Holy Cross Parish Summer Camp, in the Mount Airy neighborhood of Philadelphia, the children celebrated a "Peace Day." The innocence of these children is inspiring and within their young eyes I saw the vision of hope which can transform our City. The children performed skits, sang songs and read poems about peace. The message which they conveyed is that peace can be promoted by working together, playing together and being together. Let the children show us the way!
The theme of togetherness — indeed, of unity — must fuel the City's battle against violence. Men and women, children and youth must all stand together and, in an eloquent spirit of solidarity, make it known that violence will no longer be tolerated within our community. Violence cannot be countered by violence. Rather, it can be overcome when, together, we commit ourselves to the proper formation and solid education of our children. The necessary change of attitude can only occur when we embrace those values which center on strong and stable family life. The cycle of hopelessness can only be broken when young people are given a vision for a meaningful future based on honest work rather than being left to sink into a despair which is the fruit of drugs, alcohol, greed and the pursuit of pleasure. When civic leaders partner with religious leaders, when citizens stand together to help transform society, and when God is welcomed back into the public sector, then we will see a reversal of the violent trend, a renewal of peace, a transformation of society.
This, then, is an era of hope. Entrusting our troubled situation to the God of mercy, we open our hearts to all that He can accomplish in and through us. Finally, we are convinced that the only secure future of our city and our society can be obtained through the observance of Christ's words: "This is my commandment: love one another as I love you" (Jn 15:12). Only in this way will we reach our goal. Only in this way will we discover the definitive solution for destructive violence.
