After we experience the touch of Jesus, we have a responsibility to become an effective witness of His goodness to those around us who are desperate for some sign of hope. I recently had a chat with a friend who was going through a tough time and was on the verge of what he said was losing hope. As I listened to him explain what he meant by being on the verge of losing hope, I was filled with a sense of sadness. Not because of the tough time or how hopeless he was being, but because my friend is one of those faithful Catholics who never miss the opportunity to attend Mass and receive Holy Communion. This chat happened soon after we had come from the evening Holy Mass, and yes, we both did receive the Holy Eucharist on this occasion. How was it possible that one can attend Holy Mass daily and even receive Holy Communion daily, and yet allow the trials of life to become so pressing; or the circumstances surrounding the event to become so disappointing; or the pain that is associated with it to become so unbearable, that one is tempted to arrive at a point of hopelessness?
This got me thinking about the many Catholic Christians, who, when faced with tough times are so pushed to the brink of hopelessness that they make such statements. Why should a practicing Catholic despair of finding a solution to their dilemma and not know where to turn? I thought it might be our definitions of what hope is, that is the reason many people make such statements. So, I went looking for the meanings of the word, “hope”, in the Oxford English Living Dictionary. Obviously, I found several definitions; but, one caught my eye. The count noun hope is here defined as “A person or thing that may help or save someone.”
If we go by this definition, then Christians must acknowledge that our hope (whether it is for help or salvation) is sure to be found in the promises that God has given us in His Word. When we refer to Scripture about that which is causing us to feel hopeless, we inevitably find God’s promise of freedom which has already come to us by way of the gift of eternal life made possible through His son, Jesus Christ. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the name Jesus in Hebrew means “God saves” (CCC. 430), and backs it up by explaining that at the Annunciation, the angel Gabriel gave the name Jesus as His proper name, expressing both his identity and his mission (cf. Luke 1:31). It is, therefore, His mission to help us and to save us from whatever trials, temptations or pain we may suffer. And, as Catholic Christians, we have many opportunities in the Sacraments to encounter this Jesus, who is our Hope. Why is it then that many times we find ourselves on the verge of losing all hope?
Encounter With Jesus, our Hope
All the synoptic gospels have a record of the Cleansing of a Leper (cf. Mark 1: 40 – 45, Matthew 8: 2 – 4 & Luke 5: 12 – 14). This encounter of the leper with the Lord Jesus serves as a good illustration of what putting our trust in the Lord Jesus does for any who finds himself/herself on the verge of hopelessness. Many are like this leper in suffering a pitiful existence. Here was a man, whose body was so afflicted by a physically destructive and infectious disease, who also faced ritual uncleanness and isolation from society because of the Law of Moses concerning such a disease. Many souls are likewise afflicted, but with spiritual disfigurement and isolation because of debilitating sinfulness. We are progressively enslaved by the sin of despair (cf. John 8:34 & Romans 7:14 – 24), and it is this state of sinfulness which separates us from God and from others (cf. Isaiah 59:2 & 1 Corinthians 5:11), leading us deeper into the state of hopelessness. From the leper, we learn that, as long as he did not find a cure, he remained in the wretched state. Likewise, for as long as we remain guilty of the sin of hopelessness, we are truly wretched!
If you are wondering where sin fits in this discussion, consider the definition of hopelessness. It is a mass noun that means “a feeling or state of despair; a lack of hope.” When we get to a state of despair, we sin against God because despair is a sin against hope. It is the attitude by which man ceases to hope for his personal salvation from God, for help in attaining it or for the forgiveness of his sins (cf. CCC 2091). In other words, whenever we reach the state of hopelessness, we are actually living in sin against the first commandment. It is also one of the sins against the Holy Spirit, which we must guard against, lest we doom ourselves (cf. Matthew 12:31, Mark 3:29 & Luke 12:10). That tendency to embrace hopelessness is a form of denial of the love of God that has been poured in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us (cf. Romans 5:5).
We know that sin is universal, and all of us have sinned and are therefore deprived of the glory of God (cf. Romans 3:23), especially when it comes to the sin against hope. The tendency to lose our hope is as ingrained in us as fallen beings. We also know that sin leads to eternal death (cf. Romans 6:23 & Revelation 21:8). But when it comes to hopelessness, we somehow do not perceive how this affects our relationship with God, causing us to enter into a state of separation from God and a spiritual death. How is it then possible for us to have a confident hope?
Identify the Lord Jesus as Our Only Hope
The good news for the leper was that he identified Jesus as his only hope, and took action to obtain it. He took a big risk, going out in the crowd in this state. He trusted that Jesus would neither send him away nor pronounce a curse upon him. Thus he gained courage and cried out to Jesus. His cry was earnest and desperate, “imploring Him” to do something. It was reverent – the gospels say, “Kneeling down to Him”, recognizing the authority in Jesus to sort this out for him. It was humble and submissive, asking “If You are willing”, ready to accept whatever Jesus was going to hand him. It was believing and trusting that “Jesus can”. It acknowledged the need he had – “to be made clean”. It was very highly specific – he did not say “bless me”; he said, “make me clean”. It was personal, stressing the issue on himself, “make me clean”. It was brief, not wordy – only five words are to be found in the original Aramaic New Testament (“Thou canst make me clean”).
We, too, must identify Jesus as our only hope, and cry out to Him for the forgiveness of the sin against hope. We do this first in Baptism, which enables us to call upon the Name of the Lord (cf. Acts 2:21, 37–41 & Acts 22:16). Then we have a good conscience (cf. 1 Peter 3:21) to be able to see despair for what it truly is; and we name it as a sin against hope and sin against God. We take this admission to the Confessional to receive absolution from it. We also acknowledge that it is only through the blood of Jesus Christ that we truly purify our conscience of this sinful state (cf. Hebrews 9:14); and we find our freedom from hopelessness through prayer (cf. Acts 8:13 & 22, 1 John 1:9), particularly in the highest form of prayer, the Holy Mass.
Experience the Restoring Power of the Lord Jesus
The leper experienced Jesus in the cleansing and healing that took place through a simple word and a touch. It was actuated by the Compassion of the Lord (cf. Mark 6:34 & Mark 9:36). It was accompanied by the touch of Jesus (cf. Mark 1:31). It was accomplished immediately at the spoken word of the Lord (cf. Mark 1:41 – 42). We should experience Jesus in a similar cleansing, through a simple act of faith. It should be actuated by God’s love, revealed to us (cf. 1 John 4:9 – 10). It should be accompanied by the redeeming blood of Jesus (cf. Ephesians 1: 7 & 1 Peter 1:18 -19). It should be accomplished when we are united with Jesus in baptism having been absolved of sin (cf. Romans 6:3 – 7 & Colossians 2:12 -13).
Become a Witness of the Lord Jesus
The leper received his commissioning when he was sent away quickly with a strict warning. His instruction was to tell no one anything, but to show himself to the priest (cf. Mark 1:43- 44), and offer what Moses commanded for his cleansing (cf. Leviticus 14:1 – 7) as a testimony to them of what great act Jesus had done (cf. Matthew 11:5 & Luke 7:22). Unfortunately, he, with misdirected zeal, failed to keep quiet as directed and publicized what happened so that news of it spread. This forced Jesus away from cities, and the people now had to find Him in deserted places. We, too, have a great commission to produce Disciples of Christ (cf. Matthew 28:19 – 20), to preach the gospel to every person (cf. Mark 16:15 – 16), and to proclaim repentance and remission of sins to all nations (cf. Luke 24: 47). However, we must show proper gratitude by being faithful to this commission and going out to the ends of the world (cf. Romans 10:18 & Colossians 1:5 – 6), preaching to every creature under heaven (cf. Colossians 1:23). As we endeavor to do it, we must be aware of misdirected zeal, by which we hinder rather than help the Lord Jesus in winning over lost souls. In bearing witness to Jesus our Hope, we do not have to speak (lest our words fail us); but we must show it in our actions, in the way we live.
Other souls who are on the verge of losing hope must see in us that Jesus our Hope is reachable, accessible, available and approachable. We, ourselves, must have the courage to approach Him and ask of Him when we are in need. We must tell Him the truth openly. We reach out to Him, accept Him and allow Him to touch us, and we make contact with Him. We must seek His touch which cleanses, heals, renews, restores and makes us whole again. We must constantly ask ourselves where we are right now in our life, and if we need to be touched. Then we choose the touch of Jesus because it signifies Intimacy; for the Lord Jesus wants to be involved in our lives. It indicates Power; for it causes a change to happen (e.g. Simon became Peter, Jacob became Israel, Abram became Abraham, lepers become cleansed, and you become…). It implies Transformation of disease to health, of deafness to the ability to hear and speak to Him, of blindness to opening of spiritual eyes, of being doomed to be blessed, of the dead coming to new life, of the deceived having a new base on life, and of the dismayed or fearful being brought to courage.
This is the promise we have from God, which is made available to us by Mother Church in the Sacraments. Ours is to embrace them and make use of them; but above all, bring them to life in our daily situations. May you experience the touch of Jesus, and may you become an effective witness of His goodness to us.
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Bear Witness to Jesus Christ, Our Hope was first posted on June 19, 2018 at 1:00 am.
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