In the wake of the shootings that are happening around the United States, and in particular in Texas and Oklahoma most recently, it is easy to feel overwhelmed, depressed, and helpless in the face of all the conditions that have led the shooters to the point they reached in which mass slaughter feels like a way for them to express their pain and go out of this world. At times like these, we need reasons to hope–hope that things can and will change and that love and goodness will ultimately triumph. But even more needed than these “outcome” oriented sorts of hopes, is learning to uncover within us a much deeper source of hope within which we naturally swim but so often fail to notice and connect with.
With this in mind, LDF host Dan Wotherspoon called upon his friend who has taken a wonderful faith journey for most of her life, Janaki LeFills, to talk about Hope at this profound level. In the conversation, both Janaki and Dan share their own experiences and insights regarding the nature of Hope, and Janaki also brings in some of the work of Cynthia Bourgeault as a third voice in the discussion.
May everyone find hope during these trying times, and we encourage you to give this episode a listen.
Links:
Cynthia Bourgeault website
Cynthia Bourgeault, Mystical Hope: Trusting in the Mercy of God (Cowley Publications, 2001)
Richard Rohr, The Universal Christ (Convergent Books, 2019)
“Hope,” Mormon Matters episode, 2016
Gabrielle Giffords’ Non-profit fighting against gun violence