HOPE AND THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES
The theological virtues are so named because they are gifts of God and direct our relationship to God. By faith we believe in God and accept the truths that God reveals. We express our faith by good works, by professing it, and by spreading it. By hope we desire heaven as our final goal and have confident assurance of achieving it with the help of God’s grace. Hope keeps us from despair and self-centeredness and leads us to the happiness that comes from charity. Hope is proclaimed in Christ’s teaching, sustained by his merits, and nourished at prayer.
The Holy Spirit, through sacred Tradition, teaches the Church how to pray. The sources of prayer are Scripture; liturgy; the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love; and the ordinary events of daily life (CCC #2650-2662).
The bible presents Mary as a model of hope. She could say that all generations would call her blessed only because she had hope of eternal happiness. She relied not on her won strength, but on God her Savior, the Mighty One (Luke 1:47-49). She became Mother of Jesus Christ by the grace of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35), and she prayed for the coming of the Spirit upon the Church (Acts 1:14)
Every situation in Mary’s life that required faith also demanded hope. For faith is the assurance of things hoped for… (Hebrews 11:1). Mary had to hope that the angel’s promises to her would return safely from exile in Egypt. She had to hope, as she pondered Jesus’ enigmatic answer after he was found in the Temple, that God would somehow help her understand. She had to hope, as she stood at the foot of the cross, that life would overcome death. She had to hope, that Jesus would bring her through the trails of this life to the joy of heaven. Her hopes were realized. And the greatest sign of their fulfilment is her Assumption. Her glory in heaven pledges that Christ brings eternal life to all who put their hopes in him.
Where is your source of Hope?
To Be Continued…
Mary, Tower of David, Pray for us!!
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