Okay, so on this episode of The Patrick Madrid Show, we get a look into the virtue of hope. A caller named Matt from Columbus, NJ, kicks things off by saying that a lot of Catholics don’t really get what hope actually is. Honestly, he’s onto something.

What’s Hope, Really? 

Most people think of hope like: I hope the weather’s nice tomorrow, or I hope my team wins. But biblical, theological hope is different. The Catechism (CCC 1817) lays it out:

Hope is the virtue by which we desire heaven, trusting not in ourselves, but in God’s promises and His grace to get us there.

Basically, it’s not a shaky, fingers-crossed kind of thing; it’s a confident expectation in God’s faithfulness. 

So… Can Catholics Be Sure They’re Going to Heaven? 

Matt brings up a great point here. He adds that if you ask a Catholic, “Are you going to heaven?” they’ll respond with, “Uh… I hope so?”, but with a tone of doubt. That’s a problem. Because hope isn’t uncertainty; it’s trust.

Patrick brings in St. Paul as Exhibit A. Paul talks about winning the race and fighting the good fight; he expects heaven, but he also knows he has to persevere to the end. We don’t “earn” salvation (we need grace!), but we cooperate with it.

So, the Catholic answer isn’t “I know I’m going to heaven, no doubt” (we’re not into that Once Saved, Always Saved mindset), but it’s also not “I have no idea”. Instead, it’s:

-I trust in God’s promises

-I know He’ll give me the grace to get there

-But I also know I have free will and need to stay faithful

Hope vs. Despair & Presumption 

Patrick also covers the two big dangers that wreck hope:

Despair: Thinking, I’m too far gone, I’ll never be saved. That’s a lie; God’s mercy is bigger than any sin. Never stop hoping!

Presumption: Thinking, I don’t need to do anything, I’m automatically saved. This is also wrong; Jesus literally tells us to persevere to the end (Matt 24:13).

Hope Is Non-Negotiable. 

Patrick ties it all together with St. Thomas Aquinas, who says hope is necessary for salvation. You have to desire heaven and expect God’s help. No hope? No heaven. 

Moral of the story: Hope is trust in God’s love and promises. So next time someone asks if you’re going to heaven, don’t say “I don’t know” ... say, “I trust in God to get me there.” 

Want to level up your hope? Pray for the grace of perseverance, dive into Scripture, and never stop trusting in God’s goodness!