Sárospataki Füzetek 20. (2016)

2016 / 2. szám - ARTICLES / STUDIEN - Henk E. S. Woldring: Comenius' Search for Conditions of Peace set against the Perspective of Shalom

Comenius' Search for Conditions of Peace set against the Perspective of Shalom

pold I, both of whom he considered to be fanatic fighters against freedom of religion, and leaders of the extermination of Protestants in Central Europe. As representatives of their countries Comenius exhorted the diplomats to encourage their governments to begin a unanimous war against these rulers in order to expel them, and to appoint others in their place.6 His appeal was an outright declaration of war against the pope and the emperor, and might thus seem in possible conflict with his peace mission in Angelus pacis, although he did not see it that way. According to him, in a situation of wrongdoing and injustice, enduring peace would be impossible: a situation of enduring peace could only be achieved if certain conditions were met.

These conditions came up for discussion in Angelus pacis already, and have been discussed extensively elsewhere. Comenius discusses these conditions in his book Unum necessarium (The Only Thing Needed) that was published a year later, in 1668. In this book he enlarged on his peace mission by adding the following condition for peace: ‘Concord, the ability that ... all members of society hold together.’7 This moral concord was not based upon subjective feelings shared by citizens: it needed more. The condition of moral concord implies that in society a certain social order should exist that would be voluntarily obeyed by the citizens; they would have insight into this order and would thus voluntarily obey the government and its laws. Therefore, he argues that concord requires a social order of ‘government that is based on freedom, and civil obedience that is based on freedom as well.’8

According to Comenius, enduring peace is a situation of moral concord that was based on a social order of law, justice and other moral virtues. However, this concord is not based on this social order alone, but also on an ontological order of reality that underlies the social order. Comenius considered this ontological order in the sense of a ‘creation order’ that he interpreted as an originally harmonious order of man and fellow-man, material things and animals, plants and planets, God and cosmos. Since Comenius interpreted this ontological order as an originally and essentially harmonious order, he considered it as a metaphysical order. Comenius argued that human beings should search for their place and existential security in a world that is characterised by this order.

If the social and political order was violated by war, and, consequently, the ontological reality was broken, then, according to Comenius, people needed wise insight into the order of reality to redress the social and political order. This redress of the social and political order, that is to redress the situation of enduring peace, could be achieved by practising justice, love and other moral virtues.9

6 See Brambora, J.: Comenius und Leibniz, in Akten des Internationalen Leibniz-Kongresses (1966), Bd.V: Geschichte der Philosophie. Wiesbaden: Steiner, 1971,69.

7 Comenius, J.A.: Unum necessarium (1668) / Das einzig Notwendige, Hamburg, Agentur des Rauhen Hauses, 1964. VII, 1.

8 Comenius, Unum necessarium, VII, 2.

9 See Comenius, J.A.: Centrum securitatis, Vl-Vlll, also Beck, H.: Der Begriff des Friedens bei Comenius, in Zemek, P. (hrsg): Studien zu Comenius und zur Comeniusrezeption in Deutschland.

2016-2 Sárospataki Füzetek 20. évfolyam 69