Hope not optimism

I have spent that past few days here at The Spent Dandelion.  It is more than a retreat center.  It is sacred space.  I found out that the noise I heard last night was indeed a black bear roaming the woods.

 

The space is very restful, inspiring, and spirit filled.  All of that is good and maybe great but the reason I choose to retreat in this place is because of the wise woman who accompanies her guests while they are here.  Anna Madsen, is an ELCA pastor and systematic theologian.  Her professional website is found here.  She offers time to reflect with her and gives wisdom in response to my thoughts and reading while I am here.  As part of my baptismal reflection yesterday, I am reminded of the words we pray over the baptized.  "Sustain ______ with the gift of your Holy Spirit: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord, the spirit of joy in your presence, both now and forever."

Sometimes we experience the spirit of wisdom and understanding, counsel and might in the flesh.  During our conversation, Anna led me to this bit of wisdom that I will ponder for days, weeks, and possibly years.  It comes from a book entitled Eschatology and Hope by Anthony Kelly. 

He writes "First, hope differs from optimism.  To the detriment of genuine hope, these two notions are often confused. Optimism is no bad thing in itself. It is a kind of implicit confidence that things are going well in the present situation. Optimism may be simply a feature of temperament expressing itself in a spontaneous logic: we can manage and cope in a world that is reasonably predictable. Optimism is happy enough with the system. In contrast, genuine hope is always "against hope.” It begins where optimism reaches the end of this tether. Hope stirs when the secure system shows signs of breaking down. Hope is at home in the world of the unpredictable where no human logic or expectation is in control. It rejects any easy assurances of pretending to manage what in fact intrinsically resist management. It relies on something that comes from outside the system. In this respect, it is never far from humility for it acknowledges that in birth and death, in the wonder of life in the imitations of art, human existence is never a realm of total control. We are not the center of the universe that has brought us fourth, and the ultimate reaches of destiny are beyond human planning and control. This humility gives rise to the subversive irony on the hollowness of any cultural pretensions to deliver what in the end can come only as a gift genuine. Hope has no use for idols."

Today, I am wrestling with hope.  Pondering what it meant for Paul to utter these words in Romans: Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!” Romans 4:18

Marva Dawn, another author I am reading, presented this hope as a living doxology.  "Apply this insight to your own life in ministry.  No matter what is going on in your congregation, it is inside the greater realm of spiritual blessings.  You can say, 'even in this conflict, God can produce spiritual gifts.' 'Even in this shortage of money, God can generate other assets.' 'Even in this time of much suffering, God can create joy.'"

God of all hope, today we praise you for giving us real hope, and that our lives might be a living doxology for all that you are bringing about in your creation. - Amen