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"The one who has hope lives differently."
- Pope Benedict XVI, Spe salvi

"Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works. . ." - Heb 10:23-24

As Catholic Educators our aim is to help our students in their journey to heaven. Hope serves as the bridge to our eternal life with our Lord in Heaven. Through his death and resurrection on the cross, Jesus is the source of our hope. His love, manifested through his death, opened the gates of heaven so we may experience the hope that rests in his Kingdom.

Hope resonates in happiness. Because of our aim to experience Christ personally and intimately in every aspect of Catholic education, our schools serve as sanctuaries that resonate in hope. Since all of God’s children were created in the image of God, they have been infused with the aspiration of hope. Our activities, thoughts, prayers and intercessions direct us to a love for Christ and his church that manifests hope. In the classroom, our children deserve an atmosphere rooted in hope amidst a world that unfortunately in many ways displays despair.

Children desire a genuine sanctuary where Christ can care for their souls. Because of the perfect witness of Christ in the Holy Eucharist, this sanctuary rests in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Every sacrificial meal we celebrate in the body and blood of our Lord reminds us of the hope that rests in our Savior. When the impediments of discouragement, despair, or a lack of faith appear to take hold of our souls, we can place our trust in Christ through his sacrifice that we partake at every Sunday Mass.

Hope led our fore fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to listen to the voice of God for the benefit of his people. In faith and hope, Moses led the Israelites to freedom. Even after all of the miracles performed by our Lord, Moses still doubted. The fulfillment of our hope was realized in the Son of God, the Messiah. St. John the Baptist prepared us for him by reciting this passage from Isaiah, "...prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his path." (Mt 3:3) Hope resonates in the fulfillment of the Ten Commandments through the exercise of the Beatitudes (Mt 5:3-15), and the development and fulfillment of the seven sacraments of the Church. "Hope is the sure and steadfast anchor of the soul . . . that enters . . . where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf." (Heb 6:19-20)

I conclude with an excerpt from St. Teresa of Avila and her long desire to be united with Christ in heaven,

Hope, O my soul, hope. You know neither the day nor the hour. Watch carefully, for everything passes quickly, even though your impatience makes doubtful what is certain, and turns a very short time into a long one. Dream that the more you struggle, the more you prove the love that you bear your God, and the more you will rejoice one day with your Beloved, in a happiness and rapture that can never end. (Eccel. 15:3)