Where to Find Real and Lasting Hope

Fr. Kaz Chwalek is Provincial Superior of the Congregation of Marians based in Stockbridge, Mass.

Fr. Kaz has a special devotion to Mary Magdalene, and years ago visited the Holy Land. He visited the places where Jesus walked, died, and rose from the dead. He also saw where Mary Magdalene first reached the empty tomb. Mary loved Jesus so much, and Jesus loved her as he loves us all.

A Message of Hope

The Divine Mercy message is all about hope.

We are not alone, and it is as God told Moses: that He has seen our misery and has come to rescue us. Jesus is the source of our hope, and we have Him in the Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Eucharist.

We also continue to hear His message for us in the teachings of the Church.

Hope is the Work of Lovers

Like two young lovers in love, we must work to develop a passion for the Lord.

When someone is in love, they want to share it. We must have a passion for Our Lord as one in love, but instead we often listen to the evil one, who plants seeds of despair and confusion.

Many of us have chosen idols for our passionate love – money, cars, large homes, and more. When we remove God, we have ineffective causes of hope, we resort to ineffective means of providing hope, and ultimately we fall into despair.

St. Augustine said that our hearts are restless, and will not find rest until they rest in God.

The Hope of Future Glory

God will guide us through our dark nights of suffering and trials.

Remember, He is preparing us for greater glory beyond the grave. His Divine Love gives us hope!

When the evil one tempts us and tells us that by embracing God we will lose our freedom, recall that the broken body we see on Good Friday becomes the body of our Risen Lord to Whom we witness on Easter Sunday!

Need a dose of hope? Stay close to the Lord and trust in Him with all your might. He is the cause of our hope.