II. What do we hope?

Hope and faith are the wheels for the life vehicle to move on. Without them there would be no meaning for one to live in the world. Or even he tries to find meaning in allowing himself indulging the instincts, it’s sure that he will get bored of his monotonous way of life.

As they are fuel for the life to go on, we Catholics hope in the Trinitarian God and pray for the desires to be fulfilled by God with filial trust. We pray that we may keep God’s commandments that have been given to us, that we may avoid sin in this earthly life, that we may advance in perfection and lastly that we may persevere unto the end of this earthly journey. This is the most used formula of serial prayers form lower to higher level of perfection. Which mean the salvation comes only from Jesus who was sent by the power of Holy Spirit from the father. This formula is found in Jesus teaching to the apostles (Matt 6:9) that they should pray in Jesus name to the father.

             Augustine teaches that the necessity of prayer for perseverance has always been the faith of the church. “As the church has been born and grown and has grown in this prayer, so it has been born and grows and has grown in faith, by which it is believed that God’s grace is not given according to the merits of the receivers but because of the infinite love of God.