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 her interest for a moment, but the hope of her mother’s return is much stronger. When mother gets home the child’s face explodes with joy because her hope had been rewarded.

The season of Advent is a season of hope. 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 for hope to die. Without hope, life loses its luster and bounce. It is reduced to a drab sameness, a mere repetition of the past without a glance at what the future can bring. A life without hope leads to a kind of indifference, to depression, to a sense of helplessness. This condition is called despair and it sometimes leads to suicide.

Nobody should have to live without hope.

In the scriptures, we are given every reason to hope. “Heaven and earth will pass away,” the Lord says, “but my words will never pass away.” Whatever happens to you, whatever tragedy you may face, whatever pain and confusion you are going through in your life, these will all pass and be no more. The words of scripture are words of hope such as words of healing that can restore tired hearts, words of empathy that can uplift the lowly, words of solace that can offer comfort in trying times, and words of inspiration that can overcome impossible obstacles.

We strengthen hope by using it day by day. Hope grows when you share it with others. Don’t let a day pass without encouraging and helping someone who needs hope. The more you trust in a better tomorrow, and don’t buckle when setbacks put you down or when temptations threaten to throw you off balance, the more you will grow in hope and enjoy its fruits.

We are called as individuals to hope, and we are called as a people to expect our world to be a better place. As we await, we must use our own powers to bring newness to our communities and to our lives. Merely waiting is not enough. We must join our own strength with that of God’s spirit stirring around us to change the ugly circumstances of the world and to hasten the coming of the kingdom. God’s kingdom is a kingdom from within: it is a kingdom of justice, of peace, of friendship, of the freedom of the children of God to set captives free, give sight to the blind, and to bring an end to oppression.

Yes. Hope springs eternal in the human heart. This hope was placed within us by the Creator who gives us the power to work for a better tomorrow. We can look forward to a better tomorrow and to a life of joy in the Lord’s kingdom by putting our trust in His words which will never pass away..

This is the hope the Lord offers. Let us take hold of it and not reject the light that lights up our lives and our world.

—Fr. Hugh Duffy