The tradition of the Church speaks of three “theological” virtues: faith, hope and charity. Faith we get — needing to put our trust in God’s plan for us. Charity we get — love is the foundation of a truly human life since it reflects the life of God. Hope does not play as large a part in our lives because, when you think of it, we hope for what we don’t have. Hope is the expressing of a lack, of something missing. However, for us on this side of eternity it is a necessity. We who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to hold fast to the hope that lies before us. This we have as an anchor of the soul. In Christian iconography the symbol for hope is anchor, a reminder that even when the storms are raging around us we have a secure base on which we can hope: God’s promise to be with us. However, as the epistle to the Hebrews reminds us, as people of hope we must be patient for what we hope for comes in God’s time, not ours.
