2023 Maryknoll Student Essay Contest Winners
We asked students to reflect on this essay prompt: “Jesus teaches us to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us. How can we, as followers of Jesus, stand up for peace and against the growing violence in our country?”
We received submissions in two divisions (grades 6-8 and grades 9-12) from students currently enrolled in a Catholic school or Catholic religious education program. Following are the winning essays.
DIVISION I (Grades 6-8)
1st Place Winner - Evelyn Keown
A Life of Peace
Corrie Ten Boom once said, “You never so touch the ocean of God’s love as when you forgive your enemies.” Ten Boom was a Christian woman placed in a concentration camp for hiding Jews in her home. She spent the rest of her life speaking on the courage to forgive, just like when she chose to show peace to a Nazi guard responsible for her sister’s death. In today’s world, wars, cruelty and discrimination have become part of people’s everyday lives. However, we can be like Corrie Ten Boom and act with love in our hearts as God would want. As our society becomes more violent, we can follow the example of Jesus by showing grace to our neighbors, practicing the Catholic Social Teaching on solidarity, and being an example of peace.
By showing grace to the people around us, we can bring peace to our world. As I have grown older I have had the opportunity to meet many new people and through these people, I have learned that everyone is fighting their own internal battle. Mental illness has taken over many people’s minds and hearts. While a person may look normal, inside they can be fighting a struggle that we could never begin to understand. Romans 5:20 says, “Where sins abound grace abounded much more.” God has repeatedly shown us his mercy through the forgiveness of our sins. We can learn from his example by empathizing with those who need it. I have worked to be a friend and shoulder to lean on which has helped me show grace to all of God’s creation.
Continually, the Catholic Social Teaching on solidarity has become a vital principle to living a life with Jesus at the center. Through the development of social media, I faced many incidents of cyberbullying. As humans, we are quick to judge what we see, but we must remember that everyone was made in God’s image. The Catholic Social Teaching on solidarity calls us to see everyone as our brothers and sisters. I try to work in my life to recognize all people as part of God’s family and welcome everyone no matter their race or social class. Working as one united community can bring our world the love it deserves and through solidarity, we give hope to those who have none.
As our world grows apart, we can be good examples of peace through our words and deeds. In my life, I have begun working as an assistant to help little children learn to dance. Through this experience, I have realized how much of a role model I am for them. They look up to me not only as a teacher but also as a friend. I want to show those little girls how to act with grace and love in all aspects of their lives to make our world a brighter place. Even though I am working on a small scale to spread joy to others, this can lead to a ripple effect of kindness. As a disciple, I show other people the Jesus in my heart by the attitude I emit to the world. Through my words and deeds, I work towards being an example of how to model the love God gives me, therefore, spreading peace to our community.
Many inspirational people have changed our outlook on life through their work to make our world a more peaceful place, however, everyone can work toward this goal by what they say and do daily. Jesus calls us to love our enemies and to do this we can show mercy to all of God’s creation, practice seeing everyone as equal, and be a model of the Catholic faith. Even though I am just one person working toward peace, I know this amounts to thousands in the eyes of our Heavenly Father, so it will always pay off.
2nd Place Winner - Clare Garner
This is a really difficult question for me to answer. I almost didn’t write this essay because I couldn’t understand how to answer the prompt. I waited to start writing for a couple weeks, pondering how I could possibly answer this question. It didn’t seem like a very realistic question I could answer. What can I, a fourteen year old girl, and others around me, do to help world peace? It seems a problem too big for people like us, who can’t really make an impact on the problems of the world. But as I thought about it more, I realized in a way, we can.
For example, the butterfly effect. This idea is that a repetitive flapping of a butterfly’s miniscule wings in one area can create such a ripple effect that it causes a massive tsunami elsewhere. This shows that the little acts of kindness you don’t give much thought to can have an effect on others. Just in this way, one small act of peace done by a single person, could make a huge impact on another’s life.
Have you ever come across someone struggling with something, whether it’s reaching something, carrying groceries, or maybe even just having a tough day, and kept walking? Thinking, ‘oh, I don’t have time for this today,’ or ‘they can figure it out themselves, it’s not that hard.’ Just taking a second to stop and help that person out can make an impact. Picking up those keys they dropped, grabbing that jar of pickles from the top shelf, lending a hand with a heavy load, holding the door open, talking to that person having a bad day or maybe giving them a piece of chocolate, something like that – even giving someone a smile as you walk by them – can brighten their day. It doesn’t matter the response given to you, you should be kind no matter what. If we were only kind depending on if the receiver was kind back, the majority of us wouldn’t be kind. But your act of kindness is not dependent on anyone’s reactions, it should be an act of kindness just for the sake of being kind. This is what will bring about true peace: true generosity, selflessness, not caring whether they give it back. This is true love.
When you do these little things that have no impact on your life (other than the satisfaction of having been kind to another), they inspire the others you’ve helped to do those little things too. That person you helped carry groceries for helped another carry their groceries, that person you cheered up on their bad day cheered another up on theirs, etc., leading to a trail of peace and love and cheer spreading all around. If everyone participated in these acts of love, it would eventually lead to a majority of peace and kindness around the world. Being kind to another leaves a good feeling in your soul and theirs, which inspires that person to pass that good feeling along to others to share good feelings with even more, leaving bits of love everywhere. Peace from one heart can bring peace to the world one person at a time – all from these little acts of kindness being passed from one person to another. No matter what hard things are going on around you, you can always depend on yourself to respond lovingly – doing this can help to bring about peace.
Another way we can work for peace is to pray. Praying always has an effect. It may not seem like it, but God is always listening to our prayers and working to answer them when it’s time. We may have to get through many struggles to get there, but our prayers will be answered in due time. God has a plan for each and every one of us, and that plan is unfolding itself in every moment. Everything that happens is happening for a reason, in order to get to where God needs us to be. When we feel as if we can’t do anything about the growing wrongness of the world, one thing we can do for sure is look to God, pray, and trust that he has a plan he is working out as we speak.
3rD PLACE WINNER - Cyrus Patel
Sitting in my living room and watching the news on TV, I feel troubled by what I see. The news is filled with stories about school shootings, hate crimes, and conflicts happening all over the country and world. The images of violence and destruction leave me feeling disturbed and sad. Seeing all that chaos and fighting puts a lot of stress on young people’s minds and feelings. It is hardly surprising that there is an increase in mental health issues among the youth. According to Mental Health America, 2.7 million young people have severe or major depression this year alone.
In this mayhem, I find myself asking, “What is wrong with the world today?
Where is God in the violence and chaos? Will world peace ever be achievable, or is it just make-believe?” Jesus’ teachings are helpful but also challenging. He taught us to love each other and turn the other cheek, yet most adults don’t practice what they preach, at least not on TV or social media. One of his key lessons was to “love your enemies and pray for those who hurt you” (Matthew 5:44). In this essay, I will explore why Jesus’ teachings are essential and how we, as his followers, can help make the world a more peaceful place.
At the core of Jesus’ message is the call to love one’s enemies. This instruction, from Matthew 5:44, emphasizes the need to rise above our natural instincts and extend love and forgiveness even to those who may harm or persecute us. He showed us how to love, forgive, and make peace-probably one of the most challenging things mankind can do. By doing so, Jesus teaches us that we can break the cycle of violence and retaliation, transforming division into understanding.
Forgiveness is a central element of Jesus’ message. As followers of Jesus, we must learn to forgive those who have wronged us. While forgiveness may not always lead to immediate reconciliation, it is an important step toward breaking the cycle of conflict.
Through forgiveness, we can free ourselves from the burden of anger and work toward a more peaceful and understanding society.
Engaging in open and honest conversations with those who hold different beliefs can be a powerful tool for peace. Instead of portraying our opponents as evil or wrong, we should aim to understand their perspectives and communicate our own in a respectful manner. This approach can help both sides understand each other better and slowly reduce their hostility.
Jesus’ teaching goes beyond words; it calls us to take positive actions. Acts of kindness, even toward those who may have hurt us, can be a powerful way to demonstrate love and compassion. Small acts of kindness can spread and influence others, inspiring them to do the same and contributing to a more peaceful society.
As followers of Jesus, we should actively advocate for peaceful conflict resolutions. This means supporting rules that focus on the overall welfare of everyone in society. By endorsing these solutions, we can help address the growing violence in our country and contribute to a more conflict-free society.
DIVISION II (Grades 9-12)
1st Place Winner - Olivia Mikkelsen
Peace the Saint Francis Way
This evening I went to Mass with my family to celebrate All Saints Day. During the offertory, one of my favorite hymns, based on “The Prayer of Saint Francis,” started playing. As I sat in the pew, meditating on the words, “Make me a channel of your peace, where there is hatred let me bring your love,” I felt the deeper meaning of the song in the world we currently live in. The lyrics of this song encapsulate how I desire to live my life, and how I believe young Catholics need to live in this day and age. With all of the violence in our country, not just physical, but in our words and our actions toward others, there is no better time for the young Christian community to step up and fight for peace in a world full of darkness and despair.
It often feels like every direction we turn these days, we are surrounded by violence, making it challenging to bring peace into the world. Just because it is challenging doesn’t mean it is impossible, though. With God’s guidance, as the hymn says, we as Christians can bring “light in the darkness, hope in despair, and joy in the sadness.” I believe that our actions speak louder than our words. My journey as a young Catholic disciple began in middle school when I started attending youth discipleship camps. These camps lit a fire and desire in me to follow the only person who can bring peace to our lives.
As a young Catholic disciple, living out my faith has not come without challenges. However, I have found that in our small community, there is a great need for role models in a world full of bad influences and scary situations. For several years I have been following God’s call to be this person for the young people in my community. When I was in 8th grade, my sister and I were asked to teach a catechism class for the first graders. My immediate response was yes. I wanted to be an example for these children, just like the incredible people who had taught me about Jesus. Without their guidance, I don’t know where my path would have led. I’m so thankful that Jesus gave me supportive parents, guiding missionaries and amazing priests along the way who have formed me into the leader I am today.
Over a year ago, my friend, sister, and I established a youth group for the young people in our community. This group was formed to be a place of peace in youths’ busy lives filled with tough relationships, family problems, bullying and education struggles. Young individuals encounter numerous difficulties on a daily basis, and they don’t all have access to a place of peace to help them through the challenges. Our youth group also provides a platform to discuss the violence happening in the world from issues with war, sex trafficking, and mass shootings, to all of the other atrocities surrounding us.
I believe that if we as Christians are able to promote peace in our communities through various programs, the younger generation will take inspiration from these actions and continue to bring peace to their communities in the future. I believe that no one is too far gone to be transformed by the power of God through the people around them. Our small acts of kindness and words of encouragement can quite literally change a life, and when those actions continue, entire communities, cities, states and even nations can be transformed, and turn from their violent ways. My hope is to leave a lasting impression on my community, and that the generations after me will continue to lead our youth group as a place where all youth are welcome to come and enjoy peaceful interactions with other each other and our Lord.
As I move on to the next step in my journey, I am committed to live out the words of Saint Francis and be a “channel of peace” for everybody I encounter along the way.
2nd Place Winner - Sophia Tejwani
Growing up a young girl who frequently watched Marvel movies, I was quick to jump on the bandwagon that society presented, which was that the human race is composed of two sides that are constantly warring, Good against Evil. I found myself latching onto the idea that the two were completely and entirely different sides, as if one was black and the other was white.
However, as I grew and my world knowledge and cinematic speculations began to distinguish themselves from one another, I found that humans are not black and white, but instead, a far more complex multitude of gray hues.
This, then, posed a great question for me as I grew up. If we are all shades of gray, and if we are all made in God’s image, then why are we so quick to differentiate ourselves from one another? Half a decade later, unfortunately, I still cannot tell you why we, as humans, do this.
However, I can tell you that the process of“othering” is incredibly dangerous.
It is my belief that people should not be labeled as good or evil, but instead, their actions should be. A person can do a bad thing but it does not make them a bad person. Ironically, the action that I find to be most evil is this process of “othering” others and labeling them as “good” or “evil.” This process weakens our society as we neglect to comprehend the human experiences of others and replaces them with our own inaccurate interpretations, and in doing so, dehumanizes one another.
To demonstrate this biblically, do you think that when Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, they saw him as their brother or bothered to understand his perspective? I think not. They saw him as the “Entitled Annoyance Who Does Not Know His Place,”and therefore deemed it respectable to get rid of him. Afier all, he was evil… right?
It is not just in the Bible that we see this; everyday we are met with these kinds of examples. Every discriminatory action in our modem world stems from this root of seeing others as different. Therefore, we see them through a negative lens which can subsequently lead to unfair treatment. With racism, people are treated unfairly based upon the color of their skin. With sexism, people are discriminated against based on their gender. The list, unfortunately, could go on forever.
But just as with any seemingly never-ending problem, there is often a solution; in this case, that solution would be empathy. Empathy, in its nature, shows us other perspectives and the only way to stop the dehumanization cycle is to understand another person’s way of seeing things. It is my belief that Jesus thought this, too, for he taught and lived the ways of empathy.
When hung on the cross, he stood in his persecutors’ shoes for just a minute and saw that they were not evil; they were human, and so he prayed for them.
As disciples of Jesus, we learn from and embody his teachings. Like Jesus, we must fight with love and empathy, not hate and division. How beautiful is it that we have been shown a means of living where no individual is hurt? We need to start putting this method into action.
I hope that through empathy, we are able to see the gray hues that our world presents and not just the black and white that the process of “othering” promotes. I hope that we may empathize with our enemies and see that we are not entirely opposites, that we may love our neighbors despite our differences, that even though Jesus was crucified on the cross, his message of peace rests eternally in our souls. Through empathy, may we love and not hate, and may we create a world that is not split in two. Oh, and what a marvel, pun intended, that would be.
3rd Place Winner - Hannah Hoog
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). By willingly sending Jesus into a world laden with pain and suffering, God demonstrated an inimitable act of sacrifice: the crucifixion of His son for the genesis of humanity’s eternal salvation. This sacrificial act built the foundation of Christianity, and sacrifice continues to prevail within the core of our faith today. As followers of Jesus, we must embrace and incorporate sacrifice into our daily action for the resistance of violence and, ultimately, the promotion of peace.
With a world so filled with violence, hate, prejudice, and sorrow, making a change as an individual is daunting if not seemingly impossible. We are encouraged to “stand up” and “fight,” but figuring out how to do so in a meaningful, impactful way is difficult. Many think that the only option for progressive change is protesting, petitioning, or proclaiming to a large audience, but in reality, change starts small. The opportunity to change ourselves and the mindsets of others surrounds us daily; it simply must be recognized and acted upon. This is where sacrifice plays a role: as Catholics, we must resist the urge to both ignore and ignite problems around us and instead choose to embody Christ through peaceful action.
Daily, I am a witness to conflict. Hateful speech, minor instances of violence, and disrespectful behavior are ever present. Of course, it would be easiest to simply brush them off, especially when we are not impacted. However, when we witness these acts, recognize their wrongfulness and destruction, and decide to address them, we make a sacrifice. By choosing what is right over what is popular and easy, we set an example of morality. In giving up pride for forgiveness, violence for peace, and hate for love, we choose Christ.
When we make such choices and set such examples, we work towards something greater than ourselves and our community: we work towards change for all. Humans are followers. Naturally, the majority of us gravitate toward the ideas and actions of others rather than deciding for ourselves. Oftentimes, hate and violence begin to spread rather than love and peace.
Surrounded by poor influences, we lack moral guidance and end up condoning things like violence, racism, and sexism. However, when we put forth positive mindsets, actions, and examples, through our sacrifice, we start a chain of morality. With each instance of decisive action and positivity, the chain extends. Outreach expands, people accept, violence ceases, and ultimately, peace prevails.
For the past two years, I have served my community as a local peer juror. Once a month, me and a panel of fellow jurors are presented with cases involving middle school and high school students. We hear their situations, question the circumstances, and are then tasked with assigning a punishment. These individuals commit things like physical aggression, verbal violence, and vandalism. Each case varies, but ultimately, most give the same response for their actions: “I did it because my friends were doing it,” and “I didn’t think that it was a bad thing.” Though they are young, these children are already following the crowd. They are sacrificing their morality and goodness for the sake of fitting in, which slowly
