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What the Fathers say
Eastern Fathers
Cyril of Alexandria
What sayest thou, O Lord? Didst thou not come to give peace, Who art made peace for us? (Eph. 2:14.) making peace by Thy cross with things in earth and things in heaven; (Col. 1:20.) Who saidst, My peace I give unto you. (John 14:27.) But it is plain that peace is indeed a good, but sometimes hurtful, and separating us from the love of God, that is, when by it we unite with those who keep away from God. And for this reason we teach the faithful to avoid earthly bonds. …
Theophylact of Ohrid
Christ "is our peace" (Eph. 2:14), yet He says: "I did not come to bring peace." This means His words are enigmatic. So we say that not every peace is blameless and good, but it is often dangerous and drives one away from Divine love — for example, when we make peace and agreement to overthrow the truth. Christ did not come to bring such a peace; on the contrary, He desires that we be divided against one another for the sake of what is good, which is exactly what happened during the persecutions. …
Western Saints
Ambrose of Milan
Although in nearly all Evangelical places the spiritual intellect operates; nevertheless, for the present time, the series of senses must be moderated so as not to offend anyone with the harshness of naked exposition, especially since the sacred religion invites even the exiles of faith to reverence with moral disciplines and gentle examples of piety, kindly dissolving the hard superstitions with the meekness of its preceding discipline of faith, and compelling minds that are subject to errors to believe in faith, which it could …
Bede
Do you think that I have come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. How the earth will burn after the baptism of his passion, after the coming of the spiritual fire, is declared. Indeed, the whole world is divided against itself for faith in Christ; every household has both unbelievers and believers, and therefore a good war has been sent, so that bad peace may be broken. …
Bonaventure
Third, as regards the introduction of the divorce of carnal affection, he adds: Do you think that I came to give peace on earth? earthly peace, that is. This he came not to give, but to take away, because this is an evil peace, of which Isaiah 28 says: "We have struck a covenant with death and with hell we have made a pact." This peace the just man rejects: in the Psalm: "I was envious of the wicked, seeing the peace of sinners"; because such a peace is a perverse peace: Deuteronomy 29: "Peace shall be with me, and I will walk in the …
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