Saturday, April 2, 2011

The Gospel of Luke, chapter 4:18

This scriptural message which Jesus proclaims in the synagogue at Nazareth at the beginning of His public ministry is a message of hope.

We cannot live without hope. Take the case of a little girl, waiting for her mother to return home. She may be distracted for a while but she will return with hope to the window and silently look out, again and again. A few treats and toys may hold the child’s interest for a moment, but the thought of mother is much stronger. When mother returns the child’s face explodes with joy because her hope has been rewarded.

This is the kind of hopeful outcome that today’s scripture brings to mind. Like the little child, we can be distracted from time to time but we are pulled back to the window of God’s light, hoping for the joy of the Lord’s kingdom.

The most terrifying thing that can happen to a human being is to watch hope die. Without hope, life loses its enthusiasm and bounce. It is reduced to a drab sameness, a prodding repetition of the past without a glance at what the future might bring. It is a kind of indifference, a depression, a sense of helplessness that cannot be shaken off. Theologians call this condition despair and tell us that it sometimes leads to suicide.

If life can only be the way it is, and if life is without hope, what reason is there for going on? One of the three most important virtues is the virtue of hope. The other two are faith and love. We strengthen hope as we strengthen the others, by using it day by day. The more we hope for a better tomorrow, the more likely we will be ready for it when it comes.

Not only are we called as individuals to hope, we are called as a people to expect our world to be a better place. As we wait for the power of God to break in upon us, we must use our own powers to bring newness to our lives. Merely waiting is not enough. We must join our own strength with that of the spirit stirring around us to change the status quo and hasten the coming of the kingdom of God; hasten liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and freedom from oppression.

Hope springs eternal in the human breast. We hope in God and, in His power to transform our lives.

We can look forward to a better tomorrow and to a life of freedom in the Lord’s kingdom by putting our trust in Jesus. This is the hope that He offered to the people of Nazareth. Let us take hold of this hope and not reject the light of Christ that lights up our lives.

Fr. Hugh Duffy