It is not a coincidence that those listed as being blessed after the peacemakers are those who are persecuted (Matt 5:10-12). To be a peacemaker in a world that has learned the perverse value of confrontation is no easy task and will surely draw opposition. But in the face of such opposition Jesus is saying that the correct stance to take is to be one of peacemaking.

Today in the west and in the UK especially the...