April 27, 2025
Dear Friends,
When I learned of the passing of Pope Francis last Monday, I was immediately filled with tremendous gratitude for the ministry and witness that he offered the Church and the world for the last twelve years. For three of those twelve years, I had a “front seat” to the ministry of the pope, since I lived in Rome from 2014 to 2017, during my doctoral studies. At that time, I lived five minutes from the Vatican and would regularly see the pope at the praying of the Angelus at St. Peter’s Square on Sundays. I also had the opportunity to celebrate Mass with the pope several times. In his words and his demeanor on those occasions, Pope Francis always impressed me as a servant of great wisdom and magnanimity.
As I mentioned to you in the bulletin a few weeks ago, I have been reading Pope Francis’ recently published autobiography, entitled Hope. The pope had originally intended that the book be released after his death, but decided to have it published earlier this year because he sensed that the Church and the world were in need of hearing a message of hope. I have found the pope’s reflections on his life and ministry to be insightful and pastorally important for my own life and ministry.
As a tribute to Pope Francis, I would like to share with you some of his reflections on the virtue of hope. He wrote:
Christian hope is invincible because it is not a desire. It is the certainty that we are all traveling, not toward something we want to be there, but something that is already there. […]
Hope never disappoints.
Optimism is a valuable asset, an attitude of the mind, a quality of character that makes us lean toward a more positive view of things. But, all the same, it is something that can be betrayed. Hope cannot.
God cannot deprive us of hope, because He cannot deny Himself. (Hope, pp., 252-253; emphasis in the original)
A few pages later, he wrote, “Hope is not a way of making things easy or a panacea for simpletons, nor another way of saying ‘all is fine and dandy’: instead it’s the force for living in the present with courage and a capacity to look toward the future. (Ibid., pp. 255-256)
It seems to me that these words offer us profound wisdom that we need to hear and ponder as we strive to navigate the challenges of life. Hope is the virtue that has enabled believers through the centuries, even in the face of obstacles and oppression, to respond to the voice of the Lord leading the Church.
There is one more quote from the book I want to share with you, which sheds light on the Gospel passage we hear proclaimed at Mass this Sunday. After reflecting on the nature of Christian hope, the pope wrote, “The question of error is unavoidable in human experience. If you meet someone who knows everything and has understood everything, bid them a fond farewell and take another path. Do not go with them. Because our journey demands an openness to discovery, reappraisal, change, evolution. And surprise too. This is true for everyone, and even for the pope.” (Ibid., p. 256)
This is true even for an apostle, which the experience of Thomas reveals to us. Thomas thought he knew everything and understood everything: Jesus was dead and no one was going to change his mind on that. He was unwilling to trust the testimony of the disciples with whom he had journeyed for years, when they told him that the Risen Christ had appeared to them. Thomas was a man of no hope, because he was trapped in the “reality” he had created for himself.
But when the Risen Jesus showed and opened his hands and side to Thomas, he opened Thomas’ path to discovery, reappraisal, change, evolution, surprise, and hope. The Risen Jesus made it possible for Thomas to experience the joy and peace that comes from the truth that Christian hope never disappoints nor betrays, because God cannot deny himself.
And the Risen Christ offers you and me the opportunity to have our hope in him strengthened every time he gathers us together on Sunday to celebrate his victory over sin and death. Through the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, the Lord opens our eyes, minds, imaginations, and hearts to discover that he is with us, “already there” for us.
Peace,
Father Leo