06-12-24

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
June 12, 2024
What is hope? And is there hope that is in progress? Yesterday, I read another article on a new Alzheimer’s medication, and it sounds like another small step forward. Yes, there is a bit of skepticism in my writing, yet I recognize that often in medical research there is not a single monumental breakthrough but a long line of small incremental steps forward. Both Donna and I witnessed our mothers struggle with the ever-dimming light of dementia and Alzheimer's. It is extraordinarily painful to watch, as many of you know. And in regard to my mother, I was not the one in the daily mix of things. My three siblings were the ones who walked day to day with the progression. Though it’s not just Alzheimer's, for there is a long list of illnesses and diseases for which there is no current cure. But there are little glimmers of hope have people believing that maybe something is coming. I remember how exciting it was when the first HIV medication hit the market, yet even after it became available, I had a couple of friends die. Finally, I think about those who died because of some cancer or other fatal disease, but then I learn that they had made the choice to donate their bodies to science with the hope that something could be learned that would lead to an eventual cure. That is a very selfless understanding of hope. A person may not personally know the outcome of their hope, but the consequence of their hope reverberates well beyond that individual life.

Is my hope, O God of history, only for myself, or does it exist for my community and for the whole community of humanity? I believe the Jesus-life teaches me how hope is rooted in community that stretches across every boundary, including geography, nationality, and history. May this be my hope. Amen.