written by Pat Thompson
The next three windows on the east side of the church depict the three theological virtues: faith hope and love. They are called theological virtues because they come from God and lead us back to Him. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) says that these virtues “are the foundation of Christian moral activity…They are infused by God into the soul of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being” (CCC 1812-1813)
The next three windows on the east side of the church depict the three theological virtues: faith hope and love. They are called theological virtues because they come from God and lead us back to Him. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) says that these virtues “are the foundation of Christian moral activity…They are infused by God into the soul of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being” (CCC 1812-1813)
As we stand at the foot of the stairway to the choir loft and look up, we see that lighting the stairway is the anchor of hope. What a great place to have this window! The Catechism tells us that hope “keeps man from discouragement; it sustains him during time of abandonment; it opens up his heart in expectation of eternal beatitude…The beatitudes raise our hope toward heaven as the new Promised Land…In ever circumstance each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere ‘to the end’ and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God’s eternal reward…”So as we sometimes feel overwhelmed looking up the steep stairway of life, we should always remember what lies ahead if we are faithful!
Why is an anchor used as the symbol of hope in our window? Mike Aquilina, who has written a great book on Christian symbolism says that anchors were not mentioned in the Old Testament, but do appear in New Testament references. It is in Hebrews 6:19-20 where the anchor is clearly connected to hope. In a commentary on Hebrews, Scott Hahn and Curtis Mitch write that hope is “The confident desire for glory (Hebrews 2:10), rest (4:1), and blessing” (6:7), that “can keep the believer from drifting (2:1), just as an anchor symbolized hope in our salvation, but because it was Christ’s death on the cross that redeemed us and gave us this hope, most anchors were drawn to resemble a cross and so called crypto-crosses.
Want to read more about hope as a theological virtue? See the CCC 1817-1821.
Act of Hope
O my God, relying on Thy infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer.
Act of Hope
O my God, relying on Thy infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer.
