Hope Does Not Disappoint

Feb 19

Pope Francis has declared this the Jubilee Year of Hope. Every 25 years, the church celebrates jubilee. Hope seems to be such an important and appropriate theme, not only for the church but for our world at large. In his announcement for this jubilee, the Pope used a phrase from St. Paul to describe part of his thinking for this celebration. In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul says that hope does not disappoint.

It's a very curious statement because I think all of us have experienced disappointment, whether in a relationship or a situation where life does not go our way. But the Pope uses St. Paul's letter because, in this writing, St. Paul reminds us that while we were still in our sins, Christ came to save us from our sinfulness and reveal the depth of God's love for each of us. In The New Testament, we are reminded frequently that the depth of God's love for us goes beyond this world, to be fulfilled eternally with God in heaven.

I would like to offer just one virtue or aspect of Christian living: Joy. Jesus is the joy of a promise kept. God promises to be with us throughout all the moments of our lives to remind us of God‘s stance toward us, which will never change. That stance is love.

St. Irenaeus wrote in the early decades of the church that the most infallible proof of the presence of God in a person‘s life is the presence of joy. Joy is not so much a feeling, but an attitude and a stance. We know the end of the story, so joy is meant to characterize our lives as Christians.

St. Francis de Sales says there’s little worse than a sad saint. The end of the story is that we win in Christ’s life, death, and resurrection and sharing in the gift of eternal life. We are meant to start that life in this world, and part of that is by spreading joy.

Do not be a sad saint, but a joyful disciple.

Live Jesus!