Pilgrims of Hope!

Sunday, December 1, 2024

First Sunday of Advent

Jer 33:14-16; 1 Thes 3:12-4:2; Lk 21:25-28, 34-36

As we celebrate the first week of Advent, we are called to grow in the virtue of hope. 

How valuable is the virtue of hope for human life? 

It is recorded of Alexander the Great that when he succeeded to the throne of Macedon, he gave away amongst his friends the greater part of the estates which his father had left him. When Perdiccas, his trusted Macedonian general, asked him what he restored for himself, Alexander answered, ‘The greatest possession of all – Hope.’ 

If the virtue of hope is so valuable, how can we understand it properly?

The Angelic Doctor Thomas Aquinas defines the virtue of hope as possessing four characteristics. The virtue of hope involves (1) a good object, (2) lying in the future, (3) involving some difficulty, but (4) still possible to achieve. In short, hope is a movement towards a future possible good through difficulty. He also distinguishes hope from vices like despair and presumption. While the vice of despair finds the future good as impossible, presumption finds the future good as something easy to attain. Because both vices misrepresent God’s mercy, they both cause serious sin. 

Our right understanding of hope helps us decode the message of today’s readings. 

The first reading represents prophet Jeremiah’s messianic oracle. Even though Judah is facing devastation, the ‘righteous branch’ from the house of David will bring righteousness and renewal. As such, this messianic prophecy that foreshadows the coming of Christ signifies hope and restoration for Israel and Judah. While the messianic prophecy manifests God’s covenantal fidelity to His people, it also offers the assurance that God does not abandon His people when they need Him the most. God’s people will find God’s nearness when they walk through difficult times. 

The second reading contains Paul’s exhortation to the Thessalonian community to live lives that reflect God’s love and holiness. He urges them to be faithful even in the midst of challenges. It is Paul’s earnest wish to see that their lives become a testimony to their faith and a witness to others. Paul minces no words when he demands that holiness is the identity of Christians, and that is God’s will for their sanctification. We await in holiness to welcome the Lord. 

The central theme of today’s Gospel is watchfulness. Jesus describes cosmic signs and upheavals as signaling his coming in glory. In the face of solar, lunar, and astral irregularities, the disciples are urged to remain alert, hopeful, and prepared. While cosmic changes will sow fear and perplexity about the impending doom in those who rejected Jesus, he wants his followers to stand erect and raise their heads with the firm assurance that God’s redemption is coming near. Hence, what proves to be a sign of destruction for others is a message of hope for Christians. Jesus wants this hope of imminent salvation should animate the lives of his disciples. When we look forward to our redemption from God, our waiting becomes sweeter. 

As we reflect on the message of hope, we also need to highlight its characteristics. 

Hope Is Positive: Because hope discards any notion of despair, it is very optimistic. Hence, our waiting for Christ is not an excruciating exercise but a labor of love. As the first reading highlights, we wait in hope because our God fulfills His promises in due time. Such divine assurance animates our waiting in hope. 

Hope Is Active: There is a difference between active and passive waiting. While passive waiting reflects an idle mindset that believes in miracles without making them happen, active waiting means taking necessary steps to prepare oneself, stay engaged, and maintain a hopeful mindset. We await the coming of the good Lord by doing good works in his name. 

Hope Is Purposive: Since Christians await the Lord’s coming, our waiting in hope signifies a positive outcome. Our purpose of meeting with the Lord and meeting him in a worthy state of mind makes our lives also purposeful. Despite discouragement, oppositions, threats, and difficulties, Christians make their hope realistic by clinging to the things of the Lord.

Christians are pilgrims of hope. 

Let us pray that our hope is positive, active, and purposive so that we may meet our Lord in a worthy manner. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar