.“A Sure and Steadfast Anchor of the Soul”
The
Virtue of Hope
.
By Don Schwager
“May the God
of hope fill
you with all
joy and peace
in believing,
so that by the
power of the
Holy Spirit
you may abound
in hope.” –
Romans 15:13
We are called
to live in
hope
What
is the
Christian
virtue of
hope, why do
we need it,
and how do we
grow in it?
This short
study is
intended as an
introduction
to help us
distinguish
the virtue of
hope from its
counterfeits
and opposing
vices.
The
author
of the Letter
to the Hebrews
shows
us three
truths about
hope: First, hope
is not wishful
thinking or
passive
waiting for
something to
happen. We are
called to
"seize the
hope set
before us...
as a sure and
steadfast
anchor of the
soul, a hope
that enters
into the inner
shrine behind
the curtain,
where
Jesus has gone
as a
forerunner on
our behalf,
having become
a high priest
for ever after
the order of
Melchizedek"
(Hebrews
6:18-20). Hope
calls us to
live
differently,
invest wisely,
and stand
firmly as "a
royal
priesthood, a
holy nation,
and a people
set apart for
God"(1 Peter
2:9) and "the
coming of his
kingdom which
is immovable
(Hebrews
12:28) and
lasts forever"
(Revelation
11:15, Luke
1:33, Daniel
7:14).
Second,
hope springs
from faith and
confidence.
"Now faith is
the assurance
of things
hoped for, the
conviction of
things not
seen. For by
it the people
of old
received their
commendation"
(Hebrews
11:1-2
ESV).
Hope enables
people of
faith to see
beyond the
present fading
pleasures and
rewards and the
momentary
struggles and
afflictions
to a better
future and a
more secure
and lasting
homeland that
awaits those
who are ready
to meet the
Lord when he returns
to raise our mortal bodies to immortality (1 Corinthians
15:51-53) and
bring us into
his
everlasting
kingdom.
And
third, hope
doesn't quit
or look back.
It dares and
emboldens us
to "run
with
perseverance
the race that
is set before
us, looking to
Jesus the
pioneer and
perfecter of
our faith"
(Hebrews
12:1,2). While
we live as
sojourners and
exiles in this
present world,
we strive
to advance the
kingdom of God
as his
ambassadors
and disciples
on mission.
The Lord Jesus
is the supreme
model and
source of our
hope and
confidence
because he
has gone
before us to
prepare a
better
homeland for
us. And
through the
work and power
of the Holy
Spirit he
continues to
guide, direct,
and strengthen
us to
stay the
course he has
set for us so
we can finish
well and
receive our
reward.
Paul
the Apostle
tells us to
"rejoice in
our hope of
sharing the
glory of God"
(Romans 5:2)
and then moves
on to explain
how God uses
testing and
suffering to
train us in
Christ-like
character,
hope and
love.
"More than
that, we
rejoice in our
sufferings,
knowing that
suffering
produces
endurance, and
endurance
produces
character, and
character
produces hope,
and hope does
not disappoint
us, because
God's love has
been poured
into our
hearts through
the Holy
Spirit who has
been given to
us" (Romans
5:3-5).
Notable
models of hope
in Scripture
What does
godly hope
look like? The
Scriptures
give us a
number of
notable models
and examples who
grew in strong
hope
and courage through
the testing of
fire and
being
forged in the
furnace of
affliction,
trials, and
persecutions.
Example
of Job: Job
was a
righteous and
blameless man
of God who suffered
the loss of
his family,
home,
possessions,
and health. Satan
tried his
hardest to
make Job give
up faith and
curse God.
Although Job
did not
understand why
God allowed him
to suffer
greatly,
he responded
to God with
resounding
hope: Though
he
slay me,
I will hope in
him (Job
13:15). Only a
man of real
trust
and hope in
God could pray
as Job did
with
sincerity:
The Lord
gave and the
Lord has taken
away, blessed
be the name of
the Lord
(Job 1:21).
Example
of Joseph:
God blessed
Joseph with
extraordinary
gifts and then
allowed him to
be severely
tested through
ill
treatment and
rejection by
his brothers,
and made a
slave in
Egypt, and
thrown into
prison on
false charges.
Joseph
responded with
meekness,
humility,
trust, and
hope in God.
Through "hope
against hope"
he rose to
great power
and became a
savior for the
peoples of the
earth who
suffered
during the 7
years of
famine and he
saved his own
estranged
family as
well. He brought
redemption to
his own
brothers
through
forgiveness,
reconciliation,
and
restoration as
a united
family in
covenant
relationship
with God.
[story
of Joseph in
Genesis 39 -
50]
Example
of Daniel:
Daniel was
tested as a
young man sent
into exile in
a foreign land
(Daniel 1:6-21
ff.). No
trial,
persecution,
and threat of
death (and
being thrown
into the
lion's den)
could deter
him from
obeying and
serving God.
He persevered
to the end in
helping his
people return
to their
homeland after
their 70 years
of exile in
Babylon.
Example
of Paul: Paul
the persecutor
who assented
to Stephen's
martyrdom and
the arrest of
many
Christians
(Acts 8:1-3)
became the
great apostle
of hope who
fearlessly risked
all
to spread the
Gospel of hope
and salvation
and build
Christian
communities
throughout
Asia Minor and
Rome.
His great
faith and hope
in Christ
fueled his burning
zeal to preach
the Gospel
everywhere he
could go. No
threat of
death or
persecution
could stop him
from pursuing
the
mission Christ
gave him.
How
do we grow in
hope?
The Scriptures
show us that
hope is both a
natural human
virtue (or
character
trait), and a
gift of the
Holy Spirit
that enables Christians
to persist
in and go
after
what is good,
just, right,
and attainable
for living the
Christian life
well in this
present age as
we journey
with the Lord
towards our
true homeland
and destiny in
his kingdom
of everlasting
righteousness,
peace, and joy
forever.
The
supernatural
virtues, such
as faith,
hope, and
love, build on
the natural
human virtues.
They help us
to pursue what
is good, wise,
and just and
to reject what
is bad,
foolish, and
evil. The
moral virtues
(good
character
traits) do not
grow in a
vacuum. They
require
training,
discipline,
wisdom, and
good role
models who can
inspire,
guide, and
motivate
change and
transformation.
God's
wisdom and
good role
models are
indispensable
for growth
and training
in Christian
virtue,
integrity, and
maturity.
Some
key
characteristics
of hope
How can we
define hope
and identify
its key
characteristics?
Here is a
brief summary
based on the
wisdom of
Augustine,
Thomas
Aquinas, and
other
Christian
teachers.
The virtue of
hope is a
determined
disposition
and confident
expectation in
the pursuit of
some future
good or
elimination of
some evil in
the face of
difficulty
(toil,
suffering,
danger of harm
or loss).
The object of
hope is a good
which is
difficult but
possible to
obtain. Hope
responds to
our most
natural
desires: the
longing for
happiness,
freedom,
justice, and
truth. Hope is
confident
expectation,
but not
possession.
Once
one has what
one hopes for,
hope ceases.
As St. Paul
said, who
hopes for what
he already
has? (Romans
8:24)
Christian
hope is rooted
in trust
(faith) and
reliance on
God’s help for
those things
he has
promised us,
and
confidently
expecting to
obtain them,
even in the
face of
difficulty or
in the face of
their being
beyond our own
human power or
strength.
The Christian
virtue of hope
pursues the
greatest good
– who is God
our Lord and
Redeemer and
his kingdom of
righteousness,
peace, and
joy.
Thomas Aquinas
writes in his
treatise on
the virtue of
hope:
“The hope of
which we now
speak attains
God by leaning
on his help...
[and] the good
which we ought
to hope for
from God
properly and
chiefly is the
infinite
good... For we
should hope
from Him
nothing less
than Himself ...
Therefore the
proper and
principle
object of hope
is eternal
happiness” (Summa
Theologica II,
IIae, 17.2).
Let us hold
fast the
confession of
our hope
without
wavering, for
He who
promised is
faithful
(Hebrews
10:23).
|
On Christian
Hope by
Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI,
in his
encyclical
letter on
Christian
hope, wrote
that salvation
is offered to
us "in the
sense that we
have been
given hope,
trustworthy
hope, by
virtue of
which we can
face our
present: the
present, even
if it is
arduous, can
be lived and
accepted if it
leads towards
a goal, if we
can be sure of
this goal, and
if it is great
enough to
justify the
effort of the
journey."
Christians
"have a
future: it is
not that they
know the
details of
what awaits
them, but they
know in
general terms
that their
life will not
end in
emptiness…The
Gospel is not
merely a
communication
of things that
can be known;
it makes
things happen
and is
life-changing.
The dark door
of time, of
the future,
has been
thrown open.
The one who
has hope lives
differently;
the one who
hopes has been
granted the
gift of a new
life."
"To come to
know God, the
true God,
means to
receive hope."
The Ephesians
understood
this very
well. Although
they had
worshiped many
gods, before
they met the
true God they
were "without
hope and
without God in
the world."
"We who have
always lived
with the
Christian
concept of
God, and have
grown
accustomed to
it, have
almost ceased
to notice that
we possess the
hope that
comes from a
real encounter
with this
God." [full
text here]
|
Hope
and patience
For
in this hope
we were saved.
But hope that
is seen is no
hope at all.
Who hopes for
what he
already has?
But if we hope
for what we do
not yet have,
we wait for it
patiently
(Romans
8:24-25).
Patience
is connected
with hope in
three
important
ways:
-
Patience as
a virtue:
the trait of
bearing with
serenity
(equanimity)
what is bad,
especially
suffering, in
order to
persist in or
go after what
is good.
- Patience
under
suffering:
the bearing of
suffering,
either with a
hope for some
good to come
from it or
simply because
it is good
(virtuous) to
do.
- Patience
as restraint:
restraining
our emotions
or tendencies
that would
lead us to act
badly,
especially
restraining
our anger.
Humility
and
magnanimity -
two key
hallmarks of
hope
Hope is rooted
in humility
and
magnanimity
(generously
striving to
use one’s
gifts and
resources to
do great and
noble deeds
for the
benefit of
others). It
looks to God with
faith and
confidence
and through
love and
generosity it
pursues
great and
noble deeds
for the good
of
others.
Rebecca
Konyndyk
DeYoung, in
her excellent
dissertation
on “Aquinas’s
Virtues of
Acknowledged
Dependence: A
New Measure of
Greatness,”
shows how
dependence on
God and trust
in his help
frees us from
presumption
and
faint-heartedness,
so we can
serve God and
others
generously
with
magnanimity.
For
God’s power in
us to be
efficacious,
we must be
willing to
receive God’s
gracious
assistance, to
receive it as
a gift, and to
trust that
what is
needful will
be given.
Precisely
because
magnanimity
depends on
God’s power
and trusts his
goodness, it
protects us
from smug
presumption on
the one hand
and
pusillanimous
(small-minded/faint-hearted)
despair on the
other. Both
vices are
caused by a
view of the
self and its
accomplishments
without the
aid of grace.
The first
takes the form
of thinking
our own power
is sufficient
for goodness
so that we are
independently
worthy of
honor; the
second thinks
that since we
are absolutely
helpless and
hopeless on
our own there
is no reason
to even try to
be good. Thus
to the
presumptuous
person, God
says, “You
cannot do this
on your own” –
and to those
overwhelmed by
a sense of
their own
inadequacy,
God says, “You
don’t have to
do this on
your own.…The
gifts are
given, not
just for us,
but also for
God and for
others. When
the
pusillanimous
(small-minded/faint-hearted)
person shrinks
back from
using his or
her gifts to
help others
and meet their
needs, then
his or her
neglect will
be their loss
as well.
Pusillanimity
makes the
world a poorer
place.
There
are many
examples
throughout
Christian
history of
great men and
women of hope
and
magnanimity
who generously
served God and
their
communities.
John Wesley is
one example of
an ordinary
Christian who
struggled for
a long time in
trying to
serve God on
his own
strength,
before
discovering
how the gift
of faith and
the power and
working of the
Holy Spirit
enabled him to
pursue great
things for
advancing the
Lord’s work in
England and
the British
Isles. Other
notable
examples were founders,
builders, and
reformers,
such as
Benedict of
Nursia (who
founded
monastic
communities of
missionary
monks
throughout
Europe), Basil
the Great, Bernard
of Clairvaux,
Martin Luther,
William Carey,
Billy Graham,
and Mother
Theresa - to
name only a
few.
Counterfeits
and Vices:
Presumption
Vain hope is
based on false
self-reliance
and the sin of
presumption.
Presumption
claims to have
already laid
hold of
something that
we do not yet
fully possess,
while despair
leads us to
believe it is
impossible to
ever possess
it.
Presumption
arises from
vainglory,
inasmuch as it
is prideful to
assume that
God would
never punish
or exclude us
regardless of
our sins. Thus
the way to
combat
presumption is
by exercising
humility.
There are two
kinds of
presumption.
Either a
person
presumes upon
his or her own
capacities,
(hoping to be
able to save
themselves
without help
from on high),
or they
presume upon
God’s almighty
power or his
mercy (hoping
to obtain
forgiveness
without
conversion).
Presumption
rejects the
arduousness of
achieving what
we hope for by
claiming to
already “have”
what is
offered. In
this way,
presumption
sins against
hope.
Wisdom for
averting the
sin of
self-reliance
and
presumption:
Rely
not on your
strength in
following the
desires of
your heart.
Say not: “Who
can prevail
against me?”
for the LORD
will exact the
punishment.
Say not: “I
have sinned,
yet what has
befallen me?”
for the LORD
bides his
time. Of
forgiveness be
not
overconfident,
adding sin
upon sin. Say
not: “Great is
his mercy; my
many sins he
will forgive.”
For mercy and
anger alike
are with him;
upon the
wicked alights
his wrath.
Delay not your
conversion to
the LORD,
put it not off
from day to
day; For
suddenly his
wrath flames
forth; at the
time of
vengeance, you
will be
destroyed.
Rely not upon
deceitful
wealth, for it
will be no
help on the
day of wrath
(Deutero-canonical
Book of Sirach
5:1-10).
Despair
Despair
and the fear
of attaining
the good block
faith and
courage.
Despair
literally
means to not
believe or
hope. One who
despairs has
given up hope
for attaining
what is good
and right.
Despair sins
against hope
by making
impossible
something
possible,
while
presumption
sins against
hope by making
certain what
is merely
possible.
Aquinas says
that from a
subjective
viewpoint, no
sin is more
deadly to us
than despair:
"From our
point of view,
then despair
is more
dangerous,
since hope
withdraws us
from evils and
induces us to
seek for good
things, so
that when hope
is given up,
men rush
headlong into
sin, and are
drawn away
from good
works" (II-II,
Q. 20, art.
3).
Despair
commonly
arises from
spiritual
sloth
(although
interestingly
enough, he
also says lust
can lead to
despair). This
is because
despair sees
the effort
needed to
attain the
good as too
arduous, too
difficult to
attain, and
hence ends up
denying that
its attainment
is possible.
Because it is
based in
seeing
spiritual
effort as too
arduous, it is
based on
spiritual
sloth.
The best
remedy of
despair is the
contrary
virtue of
diligence, by
which we
demonstrate
zeal,
integrity and
effort in our
spiritual
undertakings.
Hope
grows with
faith and love
Hope depends
on
faith and
grows with
love: “Now
faith is the
assurance of
things hoped
for, the
conviction of
things not
seen” –
Hebrews 11:1.
Faith
in God and
hope in his
promises
strengthen us
in the love of
God. They are
essential for
a good
relationship
with God, for
being united
with him. The
more we know
of God the
more we love
him and the
more we love
him the
greater we
believe and
hope in his
promises. The
Lord Jesus,
through the
gift of the
Holy Spirit,
gives us a new
freedom and
power to live
in faith,
hope, and
love. Paul the
Apostle
writes,
"For freedom
Christ has set
us free...
only do not
use your
freedom as an
opportunity
for the flesh
[sinful
inclinations],
but through
love be
servants of
one another"
(Galatians
5:1,13).
Distinguishing
Christian hope
from
disordered
desires and
vices
The following
chart
contrasts the
distinctive
character
traits of
Christian hope
versus vanity
and
presumption,
despair, fear,
and sloth.
Distinguishing the Virtue
of Persevering
Hope from Its
Opposites:
Despair
through fear,
disbelief,
sloth & the presumption
of false
confidence and
self-reliance
..
Despair and
fear of
attaining the
good block
faith &
courage
|
Hope
persists in
and goes after
what is good
and right in
the face of
difficulty
|
Vain hope
is based on
false
self-reliance
and the sin of
presumption
|
Despair literally means to not believe or hope. One who
despairs has
given up hope
for attaining
what is good
and right.
Discouragement,
sadness, fear,
and
faint-heartedness
feed despair
and hinder
faith, hope,
and courage.
Despair sins
against hope
by making
impossible
something
possible,
while
presumption
sins against
hope by making
certain what
is merely
possible.
Despai ceases
to hope
for
personal
salvation from
God, for help
in attaining
it or for the
forgiveness of
sins. Despair
is contrary to
God’s
goodness, to
his
justice—for
the Lord is
faithful to
his
promises—and
to his mercy.
|
The virtue of
hope is a
determined
disposition
and confident
expectation in
the pursuit of
some future
good or
elimination of
some evil in
the face of
difficulty
(toil,
suffering,
danger of harm
or
loss).
The object of
hope is a good
which is
difficult but
possible to
obtain. Hope
responds to
our most
natural
desires: the
longing for
happiness,
freedom,
justice, and
truth. Hope is
confident
expectation,
but not
possession.
Hope is rooted in humility and magnanimity (generously
striving to
use one’s
gifts and
resources to
do great and
noble deeds
for the
benefit of
others). It
looks to God
with faith and
confidence and
through love
and generosity
it pursues
great and
noble deeds
for the good
of others.
|
Presumption
claims to have
already laid
hold of
something that
we do not yet
fully possess,
while despair
leads us to
believe it is
impossible to
ever possess
it.
presumption
arises from
vainglory,
inasmuch as it
is prideful to
assume that
God would
never punish
or exclude us
regardless of
our sins. Thus
the way to
combat
presumption is
by exercising
humility.
There are two
kinds of
presumption.
Either a
person
presumes upon
his or her own
capacities,
(hoping to be
able to save
themselves
without help
from on high),
or they
presume upon
God’s almighty
power or his
mercy (hoping
to obtain
forgiveness
without
conversion.
Pride assume
that God would
never punish
or exclude us
regardless of
our sins. The
way to combat
presumption is
by exercising
humility.
|
Aquinas says that from a subjective viewpoint, no sin is
more deadly to
us than
despair:
"From our
point of view,
then despair
is more
dangerous,
since hope
withdraws us
from evils and
induces us to
seek for good
things, so
that when hope
is given up,
men rush
headlong into
sin, and are
drawn away
from good
works" (II-II,
Q. 20, art.
3).
Despair
commonly
arises from
spiritual
sloth
(although
interestingly
enough, he
also says lust
can lead to
despair). This
is because
despair sees
the effort
needed to
attain the
good as too
arduous, too
difficult to
attain, and
hence ends up
denying that
its attainment
is possible.
Because it is
based in
seeing
spiritual
effort as too
arduous, it is
based on
spiritual
sloth.
The best
remedy of
despair is the
contrary
virtue of
diligence, by
which we
demonstrate
zeal,
integrity and
effort in our
spiritual
undertakings.
|
Christian hope
pursues the
greatest good
– God our Lord
and Redeemer
and the coming
of his kingdom
of
righteousness,
peace, and
joy.
Christian hope
is rooted in
expectant
faith, trust,
and reliance
on God’s help
for those
things he has
promised us,
and
confidently
expecting to
obtain them,
even in the
face of
difficulty or
in the face of
their being
beyond our own
human power or
strength.
Let us hold
fast the
confession of
our hope
without
wavering, for
He who
promised is
faithful
(Hebrews
10:23).
Hope is
mutually
linked with
faith and
love: “Now
faith is the
assurance of
things hoped
for, the
conviction of
things not
seen” –
Hebrews 11:1.
Prayer
and hope are
ordered to
each other. We
pray to
God
because we
hope in him.
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Presumption
rejects the
arduousness of
achieving what
we hope for by
claiming to
already “have”
what is
offered. In
this way,
presumption
sins against
hope.
Once one has
what one hopes
for, hope
ceases. As St.
Paul said, who
hopes for what
he already
has? (Romans
8:24)
Wisdom for
averting the
sin of
self-reliance
and
presumption:
Rely not on
your strength
in following
the desires of
your heart.
Say not: “Who
can prevail
against me?”
for the LORD
will exact the
punishment.
Say not: “I
have sinned,
yet what has
befallen me?”
for the LORD
bides his
time. Of
forgiveness be
not
overconfident,
adding sin
upon sin. Say
not: “Great is
his mercy; my
many sins he
will forgive.”
For mercy and
anger alike
are with him;
upon the
wicked alights
his wrath.
Delay not your
conversion to
the LORD, put
it not off
from day to
day; For
suddenly his
wrath flames
forth; at the
time of
vengeance, you
will be
destroyed.
Rely not upon
deceitful
wealth, for it
will be no
help on the
day of wrath
(Deutero-canonical
Book of Sirach
5:1-10). |
While despair may
have many
complicated
psychological
motives, those
falling into
it ultimately
conclude that
God cannot or
will not save
them or give
them the help
and grace
necessary to
obtain the
life He
offers.
Despair is
common today,
when we too
easily
conclude that
it is not
possible live
the holy life
to which God
summons us.
Our modern
world
considers
things like
chastity,
forgiveness,
and
self-control
to be
unrealistic,
if not
impossible.
This is a form
of despair
because it
denies that
God’s grace
can equip,
empower, and
enable people
to live holy
lives.
Hope
confidently
expects from
God the graces
necessary to
attain to
eternal life.
Hence this
type of
despair is a
sin against
hope. |
Patience: the trait of bearing with serenity
(equanimity)
what is bad,
especially
suffering, in
order to
persist in or
go after what
is good
Patience under
suffering: the
bearing of
suffering,
either with a
hope for some
good to come
from it or
simply because
it is good
(virtuous) to
do
Patience as
restraint:
restraining
our emotions
or tendencies
that would
lead us to act
badly,
especially
restraining
our anger
-----------------------------
Hope pertains
to things that
are difficult
but not
impossible; we
do not really
need to hope
for things
that are at
hand or easily
obtained.
|
|
Select
bibliography:
- Faith,
Hope, and Love,
by Josef
Pieper, first
published in
German in
1986, English
edition
reprinted in
1997 by
Ignatius Press
- Summa
Theologica, On
Hope, by
Thomas Aquinas,
an English
translation
here.
- “SPE
SALVI facti
sumus”—in hope
we were saved,
an encyclical
letter on
Christian
hope, by Pope
Benedict XVI,
2007, Vatican
- Christian
Character
Course,
Session on
Courage, Hope,
Patience,
developed by
Steve Clark,
2004
Don
Schwager is a
member of the
Servants
of the Word
and author of
the Daily
Scripture
Readings and
Meditations
website...
Top photo:
Summit Cross
on mountain
top above the
clouds, from
Bigstock.com
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