Instrument of Peace: Meditations on the Prayer of Saint Francis

Alan Paton (1903–1988) was a man of God and an internationally bestselling author whose now all-time classic debut novel, Cry, the Beloved Country (1948) is reported to have sold over 15 million copies. Twice adapted for film as well as a Broadway musical, it has been translated into numerous languages around the world.
Paton began his career as a teacher and later director of a boys’ reformatory, where he introduced what were then considered to be controversial reforms, with the intention of bringing dignity and freedom to the troubled urban African boys in his care.
He was among the founders of the Liberal Party of South Africa to counter apartheid.  In 1960, he traveled to New York to receive Freedom House’s annual Freedom Award. Upon his return to South Africa, authorities confiscated Paton’s passport for a decade, making it impossible for him to leave the country.
In addition to his critically acclaimed novels, Paton also wrote numerous books of nonfiction, including two memoirs, poetry, plays, and short stories. He is noted for his psalmic and balanced prose style.
Instrument of Peace (formerly titled Instrument of Thy Peace) has a special place in Paton’s oeuvre. Written while his wife Dorrie lay dying and yet refusing the despair he undoubtedly felt at the time, Paton encourages us to remember the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; not so much to be understood, as to understand; not so much to be loved, as to love.

Alan Paton’s Instrument of Peace: Meditations on the Prayer of Saint Francis is a refreshing voice suited perfectly to our age. The earth will receive healing and hope when millions of people believe they can make a difference as God’s instruments of peace and be given the wisdom to do so—just what this book does. -- Founder, Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others

The republication of these meditations on the prayer attributed to St. Francis could not have come at a more apt time in the world. As well as being a world-famous author, Alan Paton was a respected member of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa who represented us at important meetings of the Anglican Communion and the World Council of Churches. This collection reflects both the eloquence of a great writer and the deep spirituality of a committed Christian whose faith led him to reject apartheid unequivocally. I recommend it highly for those seeking spiritual depth in their quest to become bridge-builders in our polarized world.

-- Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town

Alan Paton was a powerful novelist and a true luminary in the decades-long struggle for freedom in South Africa. In this volume, a small gem now recovered and reprinted after sixty years, he meditates profoundly on St. Francis’s majestic prayer. He finds the spiritual depth and powerful roots of our work for justice and peace in the infinite and always present love of God for us. It is God’s own peace that anchors our own and impels us to stand up and step out to become its active instrument in healing this hurting world.

-- General Secretary, World Council of Churches

I’ve often wondered whether Alan Paton’s well-worn Bible fell open to Luke’s account of the prodigal son—a parable where the father’s boundless love and grace witness to God’s readiness to wait for and welcome home even the most wayward of sinners.

Likewise, I wonder if the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi was often on his lips. For in reading Instrument of Peace,Paton’s reflections on that prayer, there is a clear invitation to each of us not to leave the work of peacemaking to others, but to become God’s instruments—channels—of peace. There is too much hate in the world, too much power held by too few people, too much anger and bitterness. The prayer of St. Francis invites us to enter a different, more hopeful world, before it is too late.

If ever there was a time for this prayer, it is now—when peace and hope, love and faith, mercy and forgiveness are in such short supply, yet so desperately needed in our global village.

Paton had a way of laying bare what was in front of our eyes with a voice and in a way that left one humbled but never shamed.

-- Archbishop of Algoma and Moosonee, Canada