Which Is It - Hope or Optimism?

I must confess to a certain curiosity with why things turn out as they do. Therefore, I find myself reading a lot of history, biographies, and stories of human successes and failures. For the most part, I think my sisters and I were  raised with a certain degree of optimism. The bad times—World War II, the Korean War—were behind us, and my parents, not unlike most American marrieds, seemed to get back to the normal business of pursuing happiness and success, which I was led to believe were easily within my reach provided I got a decent education, worked hard, kept my word, attended church and saved my money. 

Optimism is not hope, yet it is a recurring feature of life in good times. It is also a feature that all too quickly vanishes and reveals itself for what it is when bad times return. As a young man, I lived through one of America’s historical great turning points, a turning point powerfully demonstrated in the Vietnam War.  It was not simply an ugly reality, which had divided families, and nation; it was a symbol of the clash of visions and worldviews that still is battled today, not only for America, but for global dominance.

I can well remember the astonishment on our faces when viewing pictures on the nightly newscasts with veterans being spit upon. For some years afterward, my optimism was on the decline.  Then one evening there were Germans embracing each other on top of the Berlin Wall.  From that point on it seemed that not only Germany and Europe seethed with the euphoria of change, but also America. The brave new world was being born, and optimism was the mood of the day between 1989-1991. I heard breathless gurus of the age proclaim the dawn of unfettered freedom, and one even wrote shortly thereafter about "the end of history and the last man" in the sincere belief of the triumph of free market capitalism and liberal democracy.

Yet, before I go down that path, wisdom bids me to stop, look, and listen. In the first decade of the twenty-first century I have witnessed 9/11, bombings in America, Spain, Bali, Japan, and London. We have seen the debacles of Enron, WorldCom, and the fiascos of "Bear Stearns" and "Wall Street," famine in a third of the world, tribal uprisings, civil and cultural wars, radical religious terrorism, America’s government improprieties, like the IRS, NSA, boarder indecencies, shamelessness, theft, lies and on and on it continues growing. Optimism has met its match. I am seeing the collapse of hopes and the fulfillment of fears. Bettyann and I went to the movies the other day to see America and, ironically,recognized in the previews that three quarters of the upcoming movies are reflectively filled with apocalyptic and nihilistic visions.

When hope fades, cynicism is often waiting in the wings. And this is indeed one of the great challenges of this time. Skepticism (there is nothing good and I know it) and cynicism (I can't trust anybody or anything and I know this) seem reasonable choices. But is this a necessary outcome or orientation for me? I think not. Yet, if I have bought into a rationalist vision, if I have embraced the vision and values of this age uncritically, if faith is merely a part-time investment in an over cluttered life, then perhaps I don't have the necessary orientation or resolve to face the issues and challenges of these times.

The Biblical scriptures open up a view of the world that is very different: There is a God. This God is the creator, and He is personal, loving, willful, and particular. I see that despite being a good creation, a disruption and disorder has occurred and the drama of redemption unfolds. But the central character here is God!  It is what God does, whom God appoints, and what God decides that makes the difference.

I am not saying that life according to my Christian theology is pre-determined. I have seen much too much, experienced much too much, read much too much, and pondered much too much to believe that my choices are socially conditioned, a fig-newton of my imagination or illusory (new word for me). I believe they are real. I have also seen much too much, experienced much too much, read much too much, and pondered much too much to believe that my choices are, as Lewis would say, "the whole show." History is not a fatalist's game. Humans do act, and often with serious and sad outcomes. The good news, I believe, is that I am not alone! Writing to the Romans, the apostle Paul reminded them that hope is real because it is anchored in one who is able to carry it, sustain it, and fulfill it Romans 8:24-25; 28-30 History is moving to an end, and Christ offers a good end. Thus, the difference between optimism (short term and easily overcome) and hope (eternal and anchored) is where they are rooted. One leans on Bill Prather's effort; the other rests in God and God's promises.