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What is the source of Christian hope? At a time when people often have trouble finding reasons to hope, those who place their trust in the God of the Bible need more than ever to "give to anyone who asks an account of the hope that is in [them]" (1 Peter 3:15). They have to understand what is specific about the hope that comes from faith, in order to root their lives in it. Even if by definition hope refers to the future, for the Bible it is rooted in the present, in God’s today. In the Letter 2003, Brother Roger reminds us that "[The source of hope] is in God, a God who simply loves us and can do nothing else, a God who never stops seeking us." In the Hebrew Bible, that mysterious Source of life we call God makes himself known by calling human beings to enter into a relationship with him: he enters into a covenant with them. The Bible defines the characteristics of the covenant God using two Hebrew words: hesed and emeth (e.g. Exodus 34:6; Psalm 25:10; 40:10-11; 85:10). In general, these words are translated by "steadfast love" and "faithfulness." They tell us, first of all, that God is overflowing goodness and kindness who wants to take care of his people and, second, that God will never abandon those he has called to enter into fellowship with him. That is the source of biblical hope. If God is good and never changes his attitude nor forsakes us, then whatever difficulties may arise—if the world we see is far from justice, peace, solidarity and compassion—for believers this is not the definitive situation. From their faith in God, believers draw the expectation of a world according to God’s will or, to put it another way, according to God’s love. In the Bible, this hope is often expressed by the notion of promise. When God enters into contact with human beings, generally this is accompanied by the promise of greater life. We already see this in the story of Abraham: "I will bless you," says God to Abraham, "and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed" (Genesis 12:2-3). A promise is a dynamic reality that opens new possibilities for human life. It looks toward the future, but it is rooted in a relationship with the God who speaks to me here and now, who calls me to make specific choices in my life. The seeds of the future are found in a present relationship with God. This rootedness in the present is made even stronger with the coming of Christ Jesus. In him, says Saint Paul, all God’s promises are already a reality (2 Corinthians 1:20). This does not only refer, of course, to someone who lived in Palestine 2000 years ago. For Christians, Jesus is the Risen Christ who is with us today. "I am with you always, until the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20). Another text of Saint Paul’s is even clearer. "Hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). Far from being a simple wish for the future with no guarantee that it will come about, Christian hope is the presence of divine love in person, the Holy Spirit, a current of life that carries us to the ocean of the fullness of communion. How can we root our lives in Christian hope? Biblical and Christian hope does not mean living in the clouds, dreaming of a better life. It is not merely a projection of what we would like to be or do. It leads us to discover seeds of a new world already present today, because of the identity of our God, because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This hope is, in addition, a source of energy to live differently, not according to the values of a society based on the thirst for possession and competition. In the Bible, the divine promise does not ask us to sit down and wait passively for it to come about, as if by magic. Before speaking to Abraham about the fullness of life offered to him, God says, "Leave your country and your home for the land I will show you" (Genesis 12:1). To enter into God’s promise, Abraham is called to make of his life a pilgrimage, to undergo a new beginning. Similarly, the good news of the resurrection is not a way of taking our minds off the tasks of life here and now, but a call to set out on the road. "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? Go into the entire world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation… You will be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:11; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8). Impelled by the Spirit of Christ, believers live in deep solidarity with humanity cut off from its roots in God. Writing to the Christians of Rome, Saint Paul speaks of the longing of creation and compares this suffering to the pangs of childbirth. Then he continues, "We ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly" (Romans 8:18-23). Our faith is not a privilege that take us out of the world; we "groan" with the world, sharing its pain, but we live this situation in hope, knowing that, in Christ, "the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining" (1 John 2:8). Hoping, then, means first of all discovering in the depths of the present a Life that leads forward and that nothing is able to stop. It also means welcoming this Life by a yes spoken by our whole being. As we embark on this Life, we are lead to create signs of a different future here and now, in the midst of the difficulties of the world, seeds of renewal that will bear fruit when the time comes. For the first Christians, the clearest sign of this new world to come was the existence of communities made up of people of different backgrounds and languages. Because of Christ, these tiny communities sprang up everywhere in the Mediterranean world. Going beyond the divisions of all sorts that kept people apart from one another, these men and women lived as brothers and sisters, as God’s family, praying together and sharing their possessions according to the needs of each person (cf. Acts 2:42-47). They strived to have "one and the same love, [be] united in spirit and focused on the same thing" (Philippians 2:2). In that way they shone out like points of light in the world (cf. Philippians 2:15). From the very beginning, Christian hope kindled a fire on the earth. Letter from Taizé: 2003/3
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Što je izvor kršćanske nade? U vrijeme kada ljudi često teško nalaze razloga za nadu, oni koji svoje povjerenje polažu u biblijskog Boga moraju više no ikad «biti uvijek spremni na odgovor svakomu koji zatraži obrazloženje nade koja je u [njima]» (1 Petrova 3,15). Moraju shvatiti koja je osobitost nade što dolazi iz vjere kako bi u njoj ukorijenili svoj život. Iako se nada po definiciji odnosi na budućnost, za Bibliju je ona ukorijenjena u sadašnjosti, u Božjem danas. U Pismu 2003, Brat Roger nas podsjeća da je «izvor nade u Bogu koji jednostavno ljubi i koji nas neumorno traži.» U hebrejskoj Bibliji otajstveni se Izvor života kojeg zovemo Bog obznanjuje pozivom ljudima da stupe s njime u odnos: on s njima sklapa savez. Biblija određuje osobine Boga saveznika koristeći dvije hebrejske riječi: hesed i emeth (npr. Ti se izrazi općenito prevode s «ljubav» i «vjernost». Oni nam, prije svega, ukazuju da je Bog preplavljujuća ljubav i nježnost koja želi skrbiti o svom narodu i drugo, da Bog nikada ne napušta one koje je pozvao da se s njime druže. To je izvor biblijske nade. Ako je Bog dobar i nikada ne mijenja svoj stav niti nas zaboravlja, tad, ma kakve se nevolje javile, ako je svijet oko nas daleko od pravde, mira, solidarnosti i milosrđa, za vjernike to nije kraj. Iz svoje vjere u Boga vjernici crpe očekivanje svijeta u skladu s Božjom voljom, ili drugim riječima u skladu s Božjom ljubavlju. U Bibliji je nada često izražena obećanjem. Kad Bog stupa u vezu s ljudima, općenito je to popraćeno obećanjem većega života. To vidimo već u Abrahamovoj priči: «Blagoslovit ću te», kaže Bog Abrahamu, «i sva će se plemena na zemlji tobom blagoslivljati» (Postanak 12,2-3). Obećanje je dimnamična stvarnost što otvara nove mogućnosti u ljudskom životu. Ono gleda u budućnost, no ukorijenjeno je u odnosu s Bogom koji mi govori ovdje i sada, koji me poziva na određene izbore u životu. Sjemenje budućnosti nalazi se u sadašnjem odnosu s Bogom. Ta ukorijenjenost u sadašnjosti još je osnažena dolaskom Isusa Krista. U njemu su, kaže sveti Pavao, sva Božja obećanja već ostvarena (2 Korinćanima 1,20). To se, naravno, ne odnosi samo na one koji su prije 2000 godina živjeli u Palestini. Za kršćane je Isus Uskrsli Krist s nama danas. «Ja sam s vama u sve dane do svršetka svijeta» (Matej 28,20). Drugi je tekst svetog Pavla još jasniji. «Nada ne postiđuje. Ta ljubav je Božja razlivena u srcima našim po Duhu Svetom koji nam je dan» (Rimljanima 5,5). Kršćanska nada nije pusta želja za budućnost bez garancija za ostvarenje, kršćanska je nada prisutnost božanske ljubavi osobno, Duha Svetoga, struje života što nas nosi u ocean punine zajedništva. Kako možemo svoj život ukorijeniti u kršćanskoj nadi? Biblijska i kršćanska nada ne znači život u oblacima, sanjarenje o boljem životu. To nije samo projekcija onoga što bismo željeli biti ili činiti. Ona nas vodi k otkriću klica novoga svijeta prisutnog već danas, zbog osobnosti našeg Boga, zbog života, smrti i uksrsnuća Isusa Krista. Ta je nada, uz to, izvor snage za drugačije življenje, ne prema vrijednostima društva temeljenim na žudnji za posjedovanjem i nadmetanjem. U Bibliji božansko obećanje ne očekuje od nas da pasivno sjedimo i čekamo da ostvarenje, kao čarolijom, dođe. Prije izricanja punine života koju mu nudi, Bog kaže Abrahamu: «Idi iz zemlje svoje u krajeve koje ću ti pokazati» (Postanak 12,1). Kako bi ušao u Božje obećanje, Abraham je pozvan svoj život učiniti hodočašćem, započeti iznova. Slično tome, radosna vijest uskrsnuća nije način odvraćanja naše pozornosti s životnih zadaća ovdje i sada, već poziv da krenemo na put. «Galilejci, što stojite i gledate u nebo?... Pođite po svem svijetu, propovijedajte evanđelje svemu stvorenju... Bit ćete mi svjedoci sve do kraja zemlje» (Djela 1,11; Marko 16,15; Djela 1,8). Potaknuti Duhom Svetim, vjernici žive u dubokoj solidarnosti s ljudima odsječenim od svojih korijena u Bogu. Pišući kršćanima u Rimu, sveti Pavao govori o čežnji stvorenja i uspoređuje ju s porođajnim bolima. Zatim nastavlja: «I mi koji imamo prvine Duha, i mi u sebi uzdišemo» (Rimljanima 8,18-23). Naša vjera nije povlastica koja nas izdvaja iz svijeta; mi «uzdišemo» sa svijetom, dijelimo njegovu bol, no proživljavamo to s nadom, znajući da u Kristu «tama prolazi i svjetlost istinita već svijetli» (1 Ivanova 2,8). Nadati se znači prije svega u dubini naše današnjice otkrivati Život koji nezaustavljivo vodi naprijed. To znači i prihvaćati taj Život čitavim bićem. Upuštajući se u taj Život, navedeni smo na stvaranje znakova drugačije budućnosti ovdje i sada, sred teškoća svijeta, sjemenje obnove što će u svoje vrijeme roditi plodom. Za prve je kršćane najjasniji znak novog svijeta koji ima doći bilo postojanje zajednica ljudi različitog porijekla i jezika. Poradi Krista su te male zajednice iznicale po čitavom Mediteranu. Prelazeći razlike i svakovrsne podjele koje su ljude dijelile, ti su ljudi živjeli kao braća i sestre, kao Božja obitelj, moleći zajedno i dijeleći što su imali kako bi tko trebao (usp. Težili su imati «istu ljubav, biti jednodušni, jedne misli» (Filipljanima 2,2). Na taj su način svijetlili kao svjetlila u svijetu (usp. Filipljanima 2,15). Od samoga je početka kršćanska nada palila vatru na zemlji. Pismo iz Taizéa: 2003./3