Maintaining a Culture of Peace
See also www.covenant.net/RCPeace

For pastors in the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) and the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), building and maintaining a culture of peace is not merely conflict management—it is an outworking of Reformed and historic Anglican ecclesiology grounded in the reconciled life of the Triune God.

Pastors in these traditions operate within rich confessional and liturgical heritages (such as the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Thirty-Nine Articles / Book of Common Prayer). Stewarding peace requires tethering pastoral practice to three distinct biblical realities: the Gospel of Peace, the Covenant of Peace, and the Channels of Peace.

1. Preaching and Embodying the Gospel of Peace

The foundation of church peace is objective vertical reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ, which necessarily bears horizontal fruit within the body.

  • Reconciliation as the Core Message: Pastors must continually preach that peace is not human truce-making but a finished divine work. Christ is our peace, having broken down the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments in ordinances, reconciling both Jew and Gentile into one body through the cross (Ephesians 2:14–17). Paul describes the apostolic task as the "ministry of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:18–20), declaring that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself.
  • The Armor and Posture of Ministry: In spiritual warfare, pastoral leadership must stand firm with "feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace" (Ephesians 6:15). Pastors must teach their flocks that conflict resolution begins with the justification they possess: "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1).
  • Cruciform Meekness: A church culture reflects its pulpit. Pastors in both traditions must flee quarrelsome patterns, modeling Paul’s instruction to Timothy: "And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness" (2 Timothy 2:24–25a; cf. James 3:17–18).

2. Guarding the Covenant of Peace

Biblical peace (shalom) is covenantal—it denotes wholeness, communal integrity, and fidelity within God’s redemptive structure.

  • The Prophetic Promise: God covenants to dwell peaceably with His redeemed people. In Numbers 25:12, God grants Phinehas a "covenant of peace." The prophets expand this into the New Covenant promise:

"I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore." (Ezekiel 37:26; cf. Ezekiel 34:25, Isaiah 54:10)

  • Sacramental Reinforcement:
    • In the PCA: The Session guards the Lord’s Table as a covenantal seal of communion with Christ and one another (1 Corinthians 10:16–17, 1 Corinthians 11:17–34). Partaking unworthily often stems from unreconciled, factional living.
    • In the ACNA: The liturgy weaves the covenant of peace into weekly worship through the historic Pax ("The Peace of the Lord be always with you"), requiring believers to acknowledge corporate reconciliation prior to offering gifts at the Eucharist, directly obeying Christ's command in Matthew 5:23–24.
  • Maintaining Unity as Covenant Duty: Pastors must urge members to "make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4:3), warning against covenant-breaking sins like gossip, slander, and tribalism (Proverbs 6:16–19, Romans 16:17).

3. Activating the Channels of Peace

A culture of peace requires institutional conduits and trusted mediators so that when conflict arises, it is funneled toward restoration rather than division.

Channel Scriptural Mandate Operational Role in ACNA & PCA Contexts
Christ (The Ultimate Mediator) 1 Timothy 2:5,
Colossians 1:19–20,
Hebrews 12:2		 The supreme shepherd to whom every member and leader is accountable. Peace begins with mutual repentance before the cross, looking to Him who made peace through His shed blood.
The Church (The Body & Assembly) Matthew 18:15–17,
Galatians 6:1–2,
1 Thessalonians 5:13–15 		Corporate culture where private offense is handled privately first. The congregation cultivates mutual forbearance, gentle restoration of the caught transgressor, and mutual burden-bearing.
Pastoral & Biblical Counselors Proverbs 11:14,
Proverbs 15:22,
Romans 15:14,
Philippians 4:2–3 		Trained, gospel-centered counselors step into complex interpersonal fractures (like Euodia and Syntyche's mediator in Philippi) to disentangle relational sin from underlying trauma or pride.
Confessional Leaders (Elders & Clergy) Hebrews 13:17,
Acts 15:1–29,
Titus 1:7–9,
1 Peter 5:1–3 		Sessions (PCA) and Vestries/Clergy/Bishops (ACNA) serve as constitutional courts of appeal and shepherd-judges, using biblical church discipline not as punitive retaliation, but as a healing ordinance to recover wandering souls.

4. Cultivating the Surrounding Culture of Peace

To foster an enduring culture that repels divisiveness, pastors in both communions must implement proactive habits across liturgy, doctrine, and polity:

  • Normalize Forgiveness as Liturgical and Doctrinal Practice: Embed corporate confession (1 John 1:8–9) and the assurance of pardon as the rhythmic heartbeat of community life, reminding believers to "be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you" (Ephesians 4:32, Colossians 3:12–15).
  • Train the Flock in Peacemaking Principles: Equip members with procedural wisdom—distinguishing between overlooking an offense (Proverbs 19:11, 1 Peter 4:8) and initiating loving, private confrontation without triangulation (Matthew 18:15).
  • Pursue External Civic and Ecumenical Peace: Grounded in Christ’s promise—"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matthew 5:9)—pastors must teach their people to live peaceably in an adversarial culture: "If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all" (Romans 12:18; cf. Jeremiah 29:7, Hebrews 12:14).

By aligning pulpit proclamation, sacramental oversight, and formal presbyterial or episcopal structures with these scriptures, pastors ensure that peace is not an occasional intervention, but the prevailing climate of the church.