The Nature of Hope and Its Opposites

Prof. Michael Wahl explores the theological virtue of hope as essential for Christian pilgrimage, distinguishing it from mere passion by examining how hope directs us toward God as our ultimate, difficult yet attainable good.

This lecture was given on February 29th, 2024, at Cornell University.

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About the Speaker:

Dr. Michael Wahl is Assistant Professor of Theology at Providence College in Providence, RI, where he teaches in the Theology Department, the Development of Western Civilization Program, and the Liberal Arts Honors Program. His research centers on Catholic moral theology, with a particular focus on virtue ethics, moral development, and the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas. His scholarly work has been published in The Thomist, Nova et Vetera, and Philosophy, Theology, and the Sciences.

Keywords: Aristotle, Benedict XVI, Christian Pilgrimage, Faith, Hope as Passion, Hope as Theological Virtue, Humility, Josef Pieper, Magnanimity, Nicomachean Ethics