Fr. Frank Majka, SJ – The Bridge

Hope Springs Eternal

Our lives, especially the lives of those with Christian faith, are meant to be marked by hope. Hope is a deeply personal virtue and a public one as well, for St. Peter tells us we should always be ready “to give an explanation to others for the hope that lies within us.”

We may be tempted to think that hope is a kind of temperament, and that some of us are just naturally hopeful and optimistic while others are not. But I believe that hope is less about our disposition and more about our beliefs.

For a believer, hope comes from the conviction that each of us lives under the watchful gaze of a protecting and loving God who never forgets or abandons us. And we remember the example of Jesus’ prayer at the end of his life as he was commending his life and spirit into the hands of his Father, trusting that his Father would accept the gift and make it fruitful.

We don’t achieve hope only by our own efforts. Living with hope is a gift of the Holy Spirit that we need every day, some days more than others. And it is a gift the Spirit is pleased to give us, if only we ask for it in faith.