The best of things

I’ve seen the movie “The Shawshank Redemption” a few times. OK, my wife would say “a few too many times,” since I’ll watch it any chance I get.

In the movie, Andy Dufresne, convicted wrongly of murder, tells his friend, “Remember Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.”

Hope is woven through the plot of Shawshank because it is the thing that keeps Dufresne sane over two decades, all while he plots an elaborate prison escape.

A quarter century ago, the world approached the turn of the year 2000 and we were all worried about the Y2K problem that would mess up all our computer systems and throw life into disarray. It seemed a hopeless time.

In his landmark encyclical announcing plans and priorities for approaching the turn of the century, Pope St. John Paul II reflected on hope in “Tertio Millennio Adveniente” (“As the Third Millennium Draws Near”) and mentions the word 13 times in the document. “The basic attitude of hope, on the one hand encourages the Christian not to lose sight of the final goal which gives meaning and value to life, and on the other, offers solid and profound reasons for a daily commitment to transform reality in order to make it correspond to God’s plan” (TMA 46).

John Paul went on to note the need for a better appreciation and understanding of the signs of hope in the late 20th century, even if they seemed hidden. He cited progress in science, technology and medicine, as well as awareness of the environment, efforts to restore peace and justice, and a desire for reconciliation between different peoples. Sound familiar?

Now, 25 years later, we prepare to enter another jubilee year, which Pope Francis has themed, “Pilgrims of Hope.” In the papal bull announcing the ordinary jubilee – “Spes Non Confundit” (“Hope Does Not Disappoint”) – he mentions the word “hope” 117 times. He acknowledges that uncertainty about the future can cause apprehensiveness, anxiety, hesitation and doubt.

However, he says, “Everyone knows what it is to hope. In the heart of each person, hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future may bring. … For all of us, may the jubilee be an opportunity to be renewed in hope. God’s word helps us find reasons for that hope” (SNC 1).

Not everyone can go to Rome to experience the jubilee and walk through the Holy Doors, although about 30 million people more than usual are expected to make a pilgrimage there.

The Archdiocese of Baltimore will offer six pilgrimage sites in Baltimore, Emmitsburg and Cumberland, as well as jubilee passports to check your progress in participating in the jubilee year.

Given the situation in our state, our country and the world today, it can be hard not to despair. Life is still threatened – in the womb and on our streets. We could point to any number of ways that life today – while enhanced in some ways by technology – remains a challenge. We have people living in poverty, people affected by abuse of opioids and other substances, people fighting cancer and other diseases.

And yet … “hope is a good thing.”

We know of people who are serving those who experience poverty and homelessness. We know agencies helping those who struggle with substance abuse disorder. We tell the stories of medical professionals exploring new ways to treat and prevent disease.

“In addition to finding hope in God’s grace, we are also called to discover hope in the signs of the times that the Lord gives us,” Pope Francis said. He called for us to be signs of hope for those in prison, the sick, migrants, the elderly, youths and those who are poor.

For those searching for answers in such a world, hope may indeed be “the best of things.”

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