Unarmed and Disarming Witnesses
by friar Kole Resler, OFM Conv.

I am friar Kole Resler, a novice and still a beginner in Franciscan religious life. The novitiate is a year set apart for prayer, discernment, and deepening my love for God and for the Franciscan way of life. But this year has become even more meaningful because Pope Leo XIV has given the Church a Jubilee Year of St. Francis during the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ passing.
In his letter announcing the Jubilee, the Holy Father expressed his desire to be spiritually united with the entire Franciscan family. That touched me. It reminded me that even as a novice, at the beginning of this life, I am part of something much larger than myself.
Pope Leo also expresses a deep desire for peace and a firm hope that St. Francis can help us seek it. At first, that may seem impossible. The world’s divisions can feel too deep, as fear, violence, mistrust, and self-interest often seem stronger than the Gospel. But St. Francis is no stranger to impossible tasks.
Many people must have thought his original desire to live the Gospel literally was impossible. Yet by grace, Francis became what some have called “a man-made prayer.” His life became so centered on Christ that even now, 800 years later, he continues to teach the Church how to seek peace.
In the prayer Pope Leo offered for this Jubilee Year, I was especially struck by the call to become “unarmed and disarming witnesses.” That phrase has stayed with me.
Peace is not created through fear. It is not formed by manipulation, control, or treating others as enemies to defeat. The peace of Christ asks something more vulnerable from us. It asks us to enter the messiness of the world with love. It asks us to be present without weapons, without hardened hearts, and without the need to dominate. That is not easy. But it is Franciscan.
In the novitiate, I am learning that peace begins in hidden places: in prayer, in silence, in community life, and in the small daily choices that either harden the heart or make room for grace. Before we can announce peace to the world, we must allow Christ to form peace within us.
When we turn to St. Francis, we see several paths toward peace. We are called to embrace the poor in solidarity. We are called to announce peace from a real encounter with Jesus Christ. We are called to see God’s presence in Creation and to respond with awe and wonder.
As a novice, I know I am only beginning to understand this vocation. But I also know that the world needs witnesses who are gentle without being weak, humble without being passive, and peaceful without being afraid.
May St. Francis intercede for us, so that in our own time, all of us may become true peacemakers.