Grieved by Their Quarrel, He Urges Peace

“But, glorious Providence of God! How deep a wound did not only my ears but my very heart receive at the report that there were divisions among you even more serious than those that still went on in that country! So you, through whose help I had hoped to find a remedy for the errors of others, are in a state that needs healing even more than theirs. And yet, having looked carefully into the origin and basis of these differences, I find the cause to be truly trivial, and quite unworthy of such fierce contention. So, feeling compelled to write you this letter, and at the same time to appeal to your oneness of mind and your good sense, I call on divine Providence to help me in the task, as I step into your quarrel as a servant of peace. And with good reason. With the help of a higher Power, I might expect to bring people back to a better spirit without difficulty, by a wise appeal to the devout feelings of those who heard me, even if the cause of their disagreement were a greater one. How, then, can I fail to promise myself a far easier and quicker settlement of this difference, when the thing that stands in the way of general harmony is in itself trifling and of little importance? [a]