When my good friend, Fr Jerry Corrigan was transferred to another parish an hour or two away I used to make weekend trips to visit him.  Besides loving the man, enjoying his company and smoking cigarettes he usually provide a mini retreat during our time and I always left him feeling renewed and most times challenged. 

During one of our weekends together Jerry was preparing his sermon on hope and asked me what I hope in.  I was a bit confused because I knew what I hoped for but not so much hoped in.  “Okay, what do you hope for?” I named off a few of the regular items; health and security for my family, world peace, a better job.  “Those are things you can earn,” he said. “Those are things God really doesn’t get involved with.”  I was shocked.  

“God doesn’t get involved in my well being?”  I shot back. 

“Oh yes. Very much so.  But he gives you free will in how to do that.”  He paused…”What if I were to suggest that hope is a doorway to choice and choice leads to trust.”   I was confused by that time.  He could see it.  He turned to the Gospel for the coming Sunday, Luke 18:22. “Here’s the story of the young rich man wanting to know how to get into heaven.  ‘When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”  Jerry paused.  “Do you remember what that young man did?  He went away sad because he couldn’t imagine letting go of everything and he hoped in what he had to get him into heaven.”  

He continued, “Hope for heaven, health, world peace leads us to the personal choices we make and trust that our action will lead to ‘heaven’ or whatever.”  He paused.  “Hoping for is easy.  Hoping in makes us work.  Hoping in the Lord to provide is like the young man asking Jesus how do I get in.  Jesus’ response was let it all go and follow me.”

It started to make sense, but I still needed to wrestle with it.  On the way home from my weekend visit I thought long and hard about what Jerry was saying.  “There is freedom in letting go.  There is peace when I trust. ”  This was not a song that came along quickly and, as I think of it I really struggled to pulled it together.  Perhaps I was hoping God would fix it for me.