Hope, the Small Candle that Pushes Back the Darkness

Hope is one of the three Theological Virtues: Faith, Hope, and Love. These virtues are engendered through deepening our relationship with God, the Holy Trinity. They allow us to live more directly and purposefully according to God’s will. They are the foundation of a Christian’s moral life, for they animate, support, and strengthen our moral character, making us ever more capable of living according to His will. Let us now take a brief look at the virtue of Hope.

Hope is the source of our desire to enter into the heavenly kingdom and eternal life. “The Holy Spirit [was] poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:6-7). Hope is related to our natural desire for happiness, a happiness that is greater than that which this world can offer us. The theological virtue of Hope does two things for us; it inspires and purifies our moral choices and actions, ordering them to God’s will and our desire to know, love and to serve Him and our neighbor more purposefully through our choices and actions in this world so that we can live with Him forever in the next.

In the classic epic trilogy by Italian Renaissance poet, Dante Alighieri, called “The Divine Comedy,” we see the main character, also called Dante, led by the poet, Virgil, as they begin the first part of their journey, which takes them through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. As they enter Hell, there is an archway they must pass through. Carved into the top of the archway are the words, “Abandon hope all ye who enter here”, for there is no hope of redemption for those who freely, willfully, and pridefully choose to rebel against God, worshiping themselves over God. Dante Alighieri’s great work was written in a time that was not unlike our own time. His epic poem was a commentary about the often dark, internal and external, worldly realities of his times. People in his day were as prone to pride, greed, war, and selfishness as we are today. They were human beings after all. His journey through Inferno (Hell) represents the first step toward salvation, which is to recognize the reality of sin and its immediate and potential effects on society and the individual soul.

G. K. Chesterton had a thought about the world and the role of hope early in the last century. He wrote: “Society praises vices, scorns the virtues, scoffs at the commandments, and revels in shock value. When we focus on all the darkness, things begin to appear hopeless.” In a world that promotes a culture of death at every level, that has abandoned any commitment to a culture of life, should we be surprised that the world often seems sad and dreary? But in a nod to Dante, Chesterton suggests that, as believers in Jesus Christ, we are called “to swim against this tide, that we should never abandon hope. Rather, what we should abandon is pride, hopelessness, and despair.”

This is what the theological virtue of Hope, empowers us to do. Buoyed by hope we are not discouraged even in the face of what seems an overwhelming tide of suffering. Hope enables and empowers us to let go of selfishness, which pens our hearts to the love of God and neighbor. Hope defeats despair, and leads us to live fuller lives, guided by a true sense of ourselves and the promises of God for our salvation.

Through Jesus Christ and his passion, God keeps us in the “hope that does not disappoint” (Rom. 5:5). We are told in 1 Thess. 5:8, “Let us…put on the breastplate of faith and charity, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.” Hope is our protection against despair. It empowers us to see and desire the true and lasting happiness that only God can give. It helps us to withstand and to overcome the darkness that often surrounds us. It is the grace that lies behind our courage to live the Christ life in a world that is often pridefully at war with that life. A deeper life of prayer, a more intentional relationship with God, is the source of our hope.

As Paul tells us, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you,” (1 Thess. 5:16-18). The world needs to see our hope for heaven lived out in our public, daily lives through our loving service, care, and support for all we encounter, especially toward those abandoned and forgotten by society. Trust in God and all things will be well.