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Sunday, December 25, 2005

Keep hope alive.

One of the best sermons I ever heard was on hope. The minister (whose name, unfortunately, I cannot remember) spoke about how hope is critical for survival and for thriving. The climax of her sermon went something like:
"One can live without friendship, but one can't live without the hope of friendship. One can live without justice, but one can't live without the hope of justice. One can live without peace, but one can't live without the hope of peace. One can live without joy, but one can't live without the hope of joy."

It was such a moving and meaningful message, and, to me, it represents the true meaning of Christmas: hope for a better life, now and forever. I think of that Sunday sermon often, am reminded that we have both hope, and the means to achieve what we hope for.

May this day and each day bring you closer to being the best person you can be! Peace and blessings to you all.

Hope is definitely not the same thing as optimism. It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out. - Václav Havel (b. 1936), Czech playwright, president.

3 comments:

janinsanfran said...

In historic Christian morality, hope is "theological virtue" -- something we are called to hold onto as an expression of our confidence in God's love. Among secular revolutionaries, hope is a "revolutionary virtue," that which maintains our connection to the good we are seeking.

Karama said...

Thanks Jan! Hope is important because it keeps the mind fixed on the positive, make one optimistic. I agree it is revolutionary, because we you are confident that positive change can occur, will occur and is already underway, it makes one all the more committed the revolutionary work of peace and justice.

I hope you enjoyed your visit to So what can I do. Please stop by again soon. BTW, I enjoyed your Christmas pictures of SF at Happening-here.

Karama said...

When I was a child, my mother took me to see Jesse Jackson at the Dunbar Community Center in Little Rock. He made the children stand and repeat this affirmation:

I am (I am!)
Somebody (Somebody!)
I am (I am!)
Somebody (Somebody!)
Respect me (Respect me!)
Protect me (Protect me!)
Never neglect me! (Never neglect me!)
I am (I am!)
Somebody (Somebody!)


Then, after his rousing speech, he called "Keep hope alive!"
And the audience responded, "VOTE!"

That went on for quite a while. What fun! How inspiring! Thanks for the memories, Mommy!