SpeSalvi2

SPE SALVISaved by Hope (part 2) : 

SPE SALVISaved by Hope (part 2)

We have progressed in sciences, inventions, mastery of nature, but… not in ethics.Every person needs to be moral. : 

We have progressed in sciences, inventions, mastery of nature, but… not in ethics.Every person needs to be moral. n. 24 The true shape of Christian hope

Structures alone do not guarantee the moral well-being of the world.-To help the individual human freedom is what is important. : 

Structures alone do not guarantee the moral well-being of the world.-To help the individual human freedom is what is important.

b) We’ll never reach a state of perfection here on earth. - Freedom is fragile.- Always in search for the better. : 

b) We’ll never reach a state of perfection here on earth. - Freedom is fragile.- Always in search for the better.

Sciences alone will never bring along a perfect world.Francis Bacon was wrong: redemption does not come through science. : 

Sciences alone will never bring along a perfect world.Francis Bacon was wrong: redemption does not come through science.

Redemption comes through love, through Jesus Christ, through the image of God in the Crucified one.-As a consequence, there is no hope if one lives without God. : 

Redemption comes through love, through Jesus Christ, through the image of God in the Crucified one.-As a consequence, there is no hope if one lives without God.

Real meaning of life is only perceived with love.-Life in abundance-Eternal life = to know God(Jn 17:3)-Communion with God-Communion with others (“being for all”, as St Augustine) : 

Real meaning of life is only perceived with love.-Life in abundance-Eternal life = to know God(Jn 17:3)-Communion with God-Communion with others (“being for all”, as St Augustine) n. 27-29 What life really is…

St Augustine (354-430)Building the “city of God” : 

St Augustine (354-430)Building the “city of God” Education at Carthage. professor of liberal arts in Rome and soon wins the appointment as Public Orator in Milan. Philosophy, astrology, and joins a strange religious sect called the Manichees. Meets Saint Ambrose, and is converted to Christianity (33). The pursuit of wisdom and contemplation. Chooses celibacy. Unexpectedly, chosen to be Priest in Hippo 3 years later. To live for Christ = be for others. Bishop 5 later.

St Augustine : 

St Augustine Contemplation + writing: one hundred and thirteen books, 218 letters and 500 sermons. “How great is it to search for TRUTH together, to deepen our knowledge through study, to mature together and look at the world with a sense of common mission.” “I prefer to listen; it is He who must speak; I must be enlightened; He is the light I am all ears; He is the word.”

St Augustine : 

St Augustine Father of western theology. City of God (13 years of work) Confessions Confessions Enchiridion Dialectica On Christian doctrine.

n. 30 Hopes of the youth : 

n. 30 Hopes of the youth Fully satisfying human love Certain position in their profession Success But man needs a hope that goes further. Only something infinite will suffice for him. THE KINGDOM OF GOD. Commitment for that better world. Challenge.

nn. 32-48 Settings for learning and practising hope : 

nn. 32-48 Settings for learning and practising hope 1. PRAYER: When no one listens to me any more, God still listens to me. Example: Van Thuan (a witness to hope) Example: St Augustine: Man to be filled with God (honey)… but small container, and with vinegar. Prayer is inner purification We cannot pray against others; we cannot ask for superficial and comfortable things; we cannot have bad desires. Models of prayers: from the Church, liturgy, the saints.

Settings for learning and practising hope : 

Settings for learning and practising hope 2. ACTION : Free the world from poisons and contaminations that could destroy the present and the future. Make a right use of creation. AND SUFFERING: due to our finitude and sins. There will be always suffering. But reduce it; soothe pain; give assistance. NOW: less physical pain, but more innocent and mental suffering.

SUFFERING : 

SUFFERING Find the meaning of suffering Union with Christ Example of Vietnamese Martyr Paul Le-Bao-Tinh (+1857) and his letter “from Hell” (n. 37) Com-passion (suffer with the other) Con-solatio (being with the other in his solitude). Suffer for the truth Offer up hardships

Settings for learning and practising hope : 

Settings for learning and practising hope 3. JUDGEMENT: In the modern era the idea of the Last Judgement has faded into the background. Frightening picture?

JUDGEMENT : 

JUDGEMENT XIX & XX Centuries systems (atheism) was an attempt to bring justice and progress because “there was no God to bring justice”. We need to create our own justice. Seeking the totally Other which brings hope: everything except for the image of a loving God. Man has “judged” God and condemned him: For Nietzsche God is dead.

JUDGEMENT : 

JUDGEMENT BUT Justice will be fulfilled only in eternity Never in totality on earth. (We will always need lawyers…) Only God can create justice. The image of the Last Judgement is not an image of terror, but an image of hope, and asks for responsibility. Example: Rich man and Lazarus (a soul destroyed by opulence and arrogance)

JUDGEMENT : 

JUDGEMENT PURIFYING FIRE of the encounter of the soul with Jesus Christ (n. 47). All falsehood will melt away. Overwhelming power of his love over all the evil of the world and in ourselves. Not possible to calculate the duration. It is the heart’s time (into Communion with God). But it’s not just God’s work, we also work out our salvation.

JUDGEMENT : 

JUDGEMENT LOVE can reach the souls in Purgatory (the intermediate State): through the Eucharist, prayer and almsgiving. Reciprocal giving and receiving. How? Interconnectedness of Being: my prayer can help in others’ purification. CONSEQUENCE: What can I do in order that others may be saved as well?

: 

Life is like a voyage in a sea. We need a star to reach the destination. Her YES opened the door of our World to God himself. Holy Mary, Mother of God, our Mother,teach us to believe, to hope, to love with you.Show us the way to his Kingdom! Star of the Sea, shine upon us and guide us on our way! MARY, Star of Hope