Optimism is Not Hope

Homily for the 6th Sunday of Easter

“Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope.”

I was struck by these words from the First Letter of St. Peter in today’s liturgy. They forced me to ask myself about the reason for my hope. At the very end of the passage that we hear today, St. Peter continues: “Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit.” As I mulled over those words, I realized that they were a way for St. Peter to express his hope.

Hope is different than optimism. Optimism is an attitude that helps us put the best spin on things that are occurring in our lives. For instance, as we continue to struggle against the contagion that is called COVID 19, several people have expressed their view that the world will eventually rid of this disease. Others have gone so far as to say that they believe that people will be kinder and more generous after the pandemic has been conquered. Lurking behind those statements is, however, the very real possibility that the virus will simply come back in a second wave that will be even worse. There is also the possibility that after we have come out of the fog of this pandemic we will simply go back to our former behavior.

Hope is not optimism because it doesn’t really deal with the present reality of our world. Hope is one of the evangelical or theological virtues that speaks about the final destiny of the world. Hope tells us that God will triumph in the end. No matter what happens in the future, those who embrace hope are convinced that after all the disease, natural catastrophes, political corruption and moral outrages have run their course, God will be triumphant. Those who cling to God will be saved and will live forever. Hope is far more powerful than optimism.

St. Peter tells us that his hope is based upon the death and resurrection of Jesus. St. Paul, in his First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter fifteen, expresses a similar thought. Without the resurrection, our faith would have been in vain. Consequently, hope and faith are inextricably linked.

So how would you answer someone if they asked you for a reason for your hope? Naturally, we can all fall back upon the reasons that St. Peter, St. Paul, and the other Scripture authors provide for us. However, it might be a good idea to formulate the basis of your hope in your own terms. For me, while the Scriptures provide me with the basis for my faith and my hope, I can also call upon some of the circumstances and experiences I have had in my own life. During my lifetime, I have experienced several life-threatening illnesses as well as a number of disabilities. Though I have often been tempted to ask God simply to heal or cure me, I have also learned that my “fall back” prayer is to ask God for the patience to deal with these situations. That prayer has been answered time and time again. So one of the principle reasons for my hope is the fact that I have experienced the effects of prayer first hand. God does keep the promise to listen to our prayers. God also has promised to walk with us in the midst of any difficulty. Because God has been faithful in this promise, I know that God will be faithful in all of them. God will indeed triumph over all adversity, over all sin, over all disease, and over all of the efforts of the world. I hope that you too will be able to speak of the reasons for your own hope.

Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator