The duty of hope

Hope is an expansion of the heart that believes in good and rests its life on it, waits without pretensions, but with a confidence in the victory of life and good that gives a mysterious strength.

Good or bad, bad or beautiful, the weather is obliged to follow the seasons and, traversing the various vicissitudes of history, faithfully brings us back to life that changes, evolves, wounds and heals, breaks down and raises, as the Lord already reminded the prophet Jeremiah .

In recent years, many events have made us hold our breath in suspense, unfortunately put tears on the edge of our eyes, tightened our hearts and tempted to discouragement or made sighs of relief gush from our chest.

Today still the prayer of the whole world, believers, knocks on the door of heaven, with almost incredulous, but obstinate hope. Jean Paul Sartre at the time he was in a German concentration camp said that man's duty is to hope; it is not a vain refuge, it is a duty and true duty builds and does not crush.

Hoping is different from dreaming and even more from deluding oneself or self-convincing methods, which can also be useful in particular moments, but which do not build life. It is something greater, more noble and more selfless, because hoping fuels life and works for others.

Evil is not hoped for; one can wish it with a heart full of poison, which hurts not only others, but also oneself. Hope is an expansion of the heart that believes in good and rests his life on it, waits like a poor man, like a beggar, without pretensions, but with a confidence in the victory of life and good that gives a mysterious strength.

Hope is a virtue that touches with the finger up to God, but does not close the fist to take possession of guarantees. These always risk giving death. For hope there is only the future and it is never combined with the past, as if his charge was extinguished.

"Hope the ultimate goddess" is an ancient saying, which means that even when everything has been lost, one still believes in life and finally in the resurrection. It is the experience of the disciples of Emmaus, who said "we hoped", imperfectly, and certainly said it with a bitter tone, while they were already walking with the Risen One. For this reason, hoping is a duty not imposed and not demeaning, but it is linked to the growth of the person. That does not end. Maybe not even after death.

Hope, she, after death, has no more reason to exist, because she receives the desired object, that is happiness and, perhaps in an ever increasing measure, because if all creation is in continuous expansion, because the heart of the world cannot be. 'man? God and his fullness of happiness can never be exhausted. This is why today we cannot even imagine it and this is frustrating. But it is always a time of Life and Resurrection, even when death roars and scares us. On earth, man's vocation is to hope and this is a light of joy.

Cesare Falletti

NP Aprile 2022