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Jurgen Moltmann said that hope produces an ‘unquiet heart’ that ‘can no longer put up with reality as it is.’ But what is the difference between hope and childish fantasy? And what about the criticism that says that we should pay more attention to the world as it is, rather than diverting our attention to the hope for ‘the life of the world to come’? In other words, what if hope ‘becomes an excuse not to deal with the reality of injustice’ (De La Torre). The connection between hope and desire is also important. Thomas Aquinas said that to hope is to be ‘directed by the power of desire’ to some difficult-to-obtain good. So how should we understand the connection between the content of our desires, and the object of our hopes? Shouldn’t we learn to accept reality as it is, and accept that we cannot always get what we want?
In this course we will wrestle with these and other questions, as we explore what theologians and philosophers have said about hope, and ask how we can learn this ‘theological virtue’ in an era when our very sense of the future as an open field of possibility is threatened. How can we connect our experiences of hope and despair with the idea that God is a sometimes-secret but powerful presence within human history?
Week 1
‘Directed by the power of desire’? On the nature of hope
In this session we begin to examine what hope is, with the help of Thomas Aquinas and a few contemporary philosophers. It seems that hope concerns our desire for that which is possible, but uncertain, and out of our control. Does mean that hope is always likely to be a pervasive feature of our lives – and if so, what should we make of this?
Week 2
God, hope and humanity
In this session we explore what it might mean to hope in, and for, God. We continue to explore Aquinas’ account of hope, this time insofar as hope is for, and on, God. We also look at what the Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner has to say about hope in relation to the ‘uncontrollability’ of God: might it be that hope shows us something fundamental about how we are oriented to divine mystery?
Week 3
Against hope
A wide range of modern thinkers have expressed doubts about the value of hope: on the one hand, perhaps hope indulges us with wishful thinking that prevents concrete action and engagement with the world as it is. On the other hand, perhaps hope for a longed for Beyond actually robs us of contentment in the present, flawed as it may be. We explore the powerful work of Jurgen Moltmann to see if Christian theology can answer these critiques, and if so, how.
Week 4
Hope and happy endings
In this session we bring some of the philosophical and theological issues above to bear upon popular culture. The final scene of a film is an interesting moment, one which can arouse powerful emotions, from sheer pleasure through to confusion, frustration or outright indignation. Why do we find certain kinds of endings satisfying? Why do some film-makers deliberately refuse us a happy ending? In this session we explore how we are comforted, challenged, inspired and perhaps sometimes exploited by film endings. And ask what all of this may have to do with the Christian imagination of ‘the life of the world to come’?
Week 5
Hope and love
Finally, we ask what hope has to do with love. On the one hand, love seems to be connected with a deep acceptance of another person, so that we want to be with them. On the other hand, love also seems to involve desiring the best for another person, which might mean not accepting the present as it is. Perhaps, then, love helps to connect hope with reality, whilst love leads us into hope.
Preparation for seminar
In addition to the audio below, please listen to the episode of In Our Time, on the BBC, here: BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Hope
In addition to the audio recording, the readings below may help you to think through these issues – but it is not essential to read them.
*note* the Rahner essay is very dense and difficult! I have marked out one section that is particularly relevant, but expect to struggle with this one…
Readings
David Elliott, ‘Hope in theology’ in Historical and Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Hope available to download from academia.edu for free here.
Karl Rahner, ‘On the theology of hope’ from Theological Investigations, vol.X (see below).
Reading
Jurgen Moltmann, Theology of Hope – ‘Meditation on Hope’
*note: this is a change to the original schedule*
Hope, love and eternity
We now begin to ask what hope has to do with love. On the one hand, love seems to be connected with a deep acceptance of another person, so that we want to be with them. On the other hand, love also seems to involve desiring the best for another person, which might mean not accepting the present as it is. So it seems natural to connect hope for the good and well-being of others with love. But if love is about the desire to be with others – the desire for communion – then we can also ask whether hope in God – and hope for communion beyond death – is grounded in ordinary love as it is experienced now.
To prepare for this session there are three resources which may be useful: an article that I wrote for Thinking Faith, which is a reflection about hope and the love of others, a section of Pope Benedict XVI’s Encyclical Spe Salvi, which connects hope with the sense that ‘true life’ is something that we desire, even though we do not fully know what it is; finally, an earlier section of his book Eschatology: Death and Eternal Life (written as Joseph Ratzinger, not as Pope).
No recording this week
Readings
Jesson, ‘Hope: Love wrestling with reality’ available here on Thinking Faith
Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi (para 1-15)
Ratzinger, Eschatology, ch. IV
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Stuart is the Theology Lead at LJC. He graduated with a degree in Literature and Theology from the University of Hull in 2000. From 2003-9 he studied Philosophical Theology part-time at the University of Nottingham, whilst continuing to work in the third sector with vulnerably-housed or homeless people, and young asylum seekers (as well as pulling pints in a pub). He was Lecturer at York St John University for almost a decade, before moving to London Jesuit Centre in 2021. He now lives in South East London, and spends as much time as he can in the woods.
