God-minded in a world that has grown atom-minded. By occasional meditation on other-worldliness we can bomb ourselves out of concentration on this-worldliness.
This, in brief, is what faith teaches us. And from this faith flows a radiant hope that gives us a true perspective of the "glory and blessedness of the things to come." As Monsignor Ronald Knox says in God and the Atom: "Where there is belief in God's existence, there must be belief in His assistance as well; hope is the natural food of faith."[1]
The world today needs such a concept of hope based on faith. The aftermath of a great war has brought with it uncertainty the unrest. Without the steadying influence of hope, nerves become frayed, phobias are multiplied, and messianic complexes develop that make one think with Hamlet that "the time is out of joint." The end is useless despair, the escape of the coward. What is needed is a touch of humor based on faith in the divine. If one has this faith, he can profitably reflect on the words of Thomas Moore:
"This world is all a passing show,
For man's illusion given,
The smiles of joy, the tears of woe,
Deceitful shine, deceitful flow—
There's nothing true but Heaven."[2]
If we evaluate the things of this life in the light of the life to come, as faith teaches, a radiant hope will follow, a hope that will enable us to accept with a Christlike spirit whatever this life may bring so that it will put to flight every thought of disappointment and despair. The measuring rod of this hope is eternity. And we turn to Mary, our hope glorified, for the necessary help and strength.
A beautiful illustration of hope based on faith is the story of St. Monica and her son St. Augustine who, after a youth of license and heresy, became one of the Fathers of the Church. St. Augustine tells us that "my mother ceased not in all the hours of her prayers to bewail me in God's sight."[3] After almost nine years her prayers were answered, and shortly before her last illness and death, mother and son talked together of happiness in the next life. Monica said: "Son, for my part, there is noth-
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- ↑ God and the Atom, p. 54, Sheed and Ward
- ↑ "This World is All a Passing Show"
- ↑ Confessions of St. Augustine, Book 3, Chap. 11
