The object of hope

The object of hope

  After a few repetitive catechisms, we can return to building our spiritual life. Last time in June we talked about the hope of what it is. Today we would think about what we hope for and why.

            In the book The Following of Christ, we read: “Do not promise what Christ does not promise you.” Our hope is often associated with earthly salvation. It is often expressed by the sentence: It will be good. We theoretically know that this is not the case, but the answer to our life is often in this spirit. The apostles hoped to see when Christ restored the kingdom of Israel. We also expect to solve our problems, improve our relationships, manage some situation and so on. We are waiting for God’s intervention in our lives. We expect the truth to come to light and God to intervene favoring the innocent. Yes, there are times in history where God intervened and miraculously rescued those who had hoped for Him, but more often remained seemingly inactive. He did not intervene, but suffered along with the innocent.

            God does not make the final settlement now, here on earth. If he did, it would not be clear at the end that death was not the last word. It would also limit our free will, for we would always do only those things for which we get immediate reward. Many people would join God for the sake of early interests, not from the heart and with faith. The selflessness of love could also not apply. Therefore, it is a great thing to leave everything for Christ, but even more is to step out of the logic that for other wants immediate punishment for every evil, and immediate reward for each ministry.

            St. Thomas therefore clearly states: the only true object of our hope is eternal bliss in God. So, you should not hope for anything less than himself.

            But this truth is embarrassing us again. The Communists regarded religion as an opium of humanity, claiming to suffer here on earth, and then, in heaven, you will achieve salvation. We must acknowledge that if we live our earthly life detached from God and faith is only one of the many things we live in our lives, this remark is justified. Then we truly wade through everything possible, struggling with a beaker while experiencing ourselves in it. God has also forsaken us. I call to him and he doesn’t hear. I’m looking for him, and he’s quiet. Then I hear that I should not wait for salvation here, but I will get it in heaven. So just need to hold on and then it will be fine.

            What is it then? Should I have hope in heaven, but on the other hand, should I not live my life here on earth just as a necessary evil? The answer is given by the logic “already and not yet”. Christ has already risen from the dead, has already conquered, but you are not yet saved, you are still on your way. So, here on earth we are already experiencing some of Christ’s victory, but we still do not live in fullness. The kingdom of God is already among us. Therefore, I am invited here to live what I will live in heaven in fullness. Faith, therefore, invites us not to live the earthly life, and the heavenly one as a two-faced reality that unites only the fact that as I live my life on earth, it will be its continuation in eternity. Christ incarnated, received our flesh. It is a real part of our life. He therefore invites us to live with God, who is a real part of our lives. Participation in Holy Mass is not an obligation that I must satisfy, nor is it an opportunity to calm down, calm down and recharge, nor is it a place where I can meet my friends. It is the presence of heaven. The opportunity here to experience something from the heavenly celebration of the Savior. If I live the present as a preconstruction and preparation for fullness in heaven, then the accusation of the Communists that we are to suffer here on earth is no longer enough.

            So our hope is directed to Christ. But not only will we be in his presence in heaven, but also that he is here with us in every situation. Again, we are invited not only to understand this fact by reason, but also to live by it.

            Let’s take a closer look at the issue. Faith can be part of my life as much as it is, for example sport. None of us who are here has the meaning of a life in sport. We take it as relaxation, venting the head, activity to slow the growth of the abdomen. So, we have the hope that if we do sport, we will be healthier, more mentally resilient, and that will improve our life. If this is not the case, we are angry at each other and either we leave the sport or we say: if I tried harder, I went to another sport, surely it would be better. So, sport loses meaning to us, but life goes on. Similarly, we can approach faith. Not as the meaning of our lives, but as an instrument from which we promise to improve our lives. We seek peace, harmony, sense, comfort. Everything we need to live a better life. So we have hope. If hope is not fulfilled, we either leave faith, or we start to blame that we are not doing enough and need to add.