Hope

In most major cities of the United States, you’ll find hospitals that were started by churches, synagogues, and other Bible-guided ministries. This is evidence of a deep connection between the Scriptures and healing. People of faith have long sought to help others in any way they could. Besides medical treatment, others have transformed lives through counseling, prayer, and mentoring. Ministers and chaplains in various traditions provide spiritual guidance to help people heal after traumatic events. Acts of healing involve justice (rendering to others what they deserve) and mercy (offering forgiveness even when it’s not deserved), as well as love (sacrificing for the well-being of others). The whole community benefits from such a healing spirit, especially when calamity strikes. These faith-filled connections can reignite hope and save people from despair.

In situations of loss and need, faith-based organizations and volunteer groups reach out to support individuals and entire communities. Like the Good Samaritan in the popular biblical story, they provide care and shelter, but these helpers also dispense food, health services, counseling, education, and many other things. The Bible challenges believers to care for “the least of these,” those too often neglected by society—the hungry, homeless, imprisoned, disabled. Throughout American history, many have taken up that challenge, bringing help and hope to those caught in crisis. 

Biblical prophets spoke out courageously against injustice, inspiring others throughout history to do the same. While American democracy is built on the inherent value of each person, at times some groups have been overlooked. In that old prophetic tradition, some intrepid souls have arisen to speak out for those who are powerless or unable to speak for themselves. Even today, people of faith are in the vanguard of a wide range of social causes, from environmental care (as 69 they honor God’s creation) to human rights (believing that all humans are made in God’s image). The impact of these efforts can be contagious, rippling out from individuals to communities, across nations, and eventually around the world.

Symbols of faith can be held literally in the hand or figuratively in one’s heart and mind. The physical act of holding a rosary, prayer book, or Bible often becomes connected with important spiritual acts of praying or meditating. For many, the feeling of the beads or pages between one’s fingers invites them to reach beyond the object itself, venturing inward and upward, contemplating the deeper mysteries of prayer or Scripture. Likewise, many people use memorial prayer cards and images of lost loved ones as reminders of the life after life, the biblical hope that extends beyond this world and into the next.

What you wear says a lot about you. We find that same dynamic in the Bible. After losing their innocence, Adam and Eve try to cover their nakedness with fig leaves until God gives them animal skins to wear. The vestments worn by Israel’s high priest in worship services are carefully described. The robes and accessories symbolize the relationship between a holy God and the chosen people. People often showed repentance by wearing sackcloth, a rough material like burlap. The New Testament challenges believers with two coats to give one away, and it celebrates the life of one woman who made clothing for the poor in her community. The last book of the Bible, Revelation, shows worshipers wearing white robes washed with Christ’s blood to represent victory over death, won by his resurrection. In all these ways and more, the act of “wearing” becomes a way to signify one’s own hope and faith in God’s promise to make all things new. 

The first thing the Bible teaches is the creativity of God: “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth.” Later we read of God creating new hearts, highways through the desert, even a “new heaven and new earth.” In their own acts of creation, many artists see themselves mirroring God’s creative work, reflecting God’s message of hope for a troubled world. From intimate handmade icons to monumental works of architecture, the creative impulse of these artisans bears witness to the wisdom, love, and mystery of their Creator. These works can also draw others into a hopeful vision of a restored society, environment, and world.

The Bible is the most read book in history. In many times and places, it was the only book available. When the printing press was first invented, it quickly began cranking out Bibles, and the Bible’s popularity soon led to a massive collection of books about the Bible. People have read the Bible in different ways, some digging into every word in every verse, others focusing on the big picture. Some study it in groups, while others curl up with it at home. Increasingly it is read on screens.

The Bible has also spawned many works of art—paintings, sculpture, and architecture that portray biblical scenes and stories of saints. In medieval times, stained-glass windows told the sacred stories to folks who didn’t have the Bible or the ability to read it. Nowadays, graphic novels serve a similar purpose, as do films, television, and online videos. 

The apostle Paul asked one church to pray for him, “that I may speak, as I should, in such a way as to make it clear” (Colossians 4:4). Proclaiming the Word has long been a priority for believers, through regular conversation or in more formal practices like preaching, praying aloud, or participating in religious services.

Public presentation often involves more than delivering the Scripture text. It can apply the biblical message to a new context, offering meaning, hope, and guidance for the listeners’ circumstances. The Bible itself is full of challenges to act on what it says, and so those who speak the Word often use the full range of their vocal ability to stir an active response in their hearers.

Listening to the Word, in the biblical tradition, involves opening the soul to God’s message and contemplating how best to receive and respond. This may start with simple reading or hearing, but it drills deeper. In addition to mental understanding, devout listening is intended to deepen spiritual insight and lead to action. As a community of faith listens to God’s Word together, they often experience a feeling of shared understanding, commitment, and purpose.

Listening to the Word can happen in many different ways: through sermons, but also prayers, hymns, and chants. Some find listening can be a personal or even mystical experience in which they hear the Word with fresh resonance