Many of us view hope as a comfy feeling or a cheerful wish, imagining that our struggles will resolve on their own. However, in the first post of this series, we explore hope as more than a fleeting emotion or passive relief. Here, hope is embraced as a moral obligation, an active stance that shapes how we live and respond to the challenges of our time. So, let us begin by looking at how hope goes beyond mere optimism into a force that can transform our lives and communities.
Commonly shared notions of hope often focus on it as a soothing presence that helps us cope with uncertainty. However, when understood only in this way, hope risks being reduced to wishful thinking that can, over time, become a passive form of expectation. Without any accompanying effort, hope that relies on someone else’s actions or on the random chance that things will improve may leave us in a state of inaction. This passivity lulls us into complacency, dampening the urgency that might otherwise motivate us to address the important issues of our times.
A different way of understanding hope recognizes it as an intentional commitment. Active hope does not merely wait for future possibilities. It works toward them. Hope acknowledges that success is not guaranteed, yet insists that effort and resilience are meaningful in themselves. In this view, hope becomes an act of courage, requiring a willingness to embrace uncertainty without being overwhelmed by it. It also relies on consistent engagement with reality, confronting setbacks head-on and learning from what does not work.
We don’t need to look at heroic figures to understand what active hope is. Hope is alive when a student sits with a book, determined to complete a lesson, master a concept, or excel in an assignment. It is evident when a parent has the courage to leave behind the world they know in search of a better future for their children. Hope shines beautifully on the face of a child who mounts a bike and doesn’t give up learning to ride it despite numerous falls.
There is a long philosophical and theological tradition that considers hope a virtue essential for ethical living. If we think of a virtue as a practiced habit that moves us toward goodness, then hope belongs in that category because it shapes our sense of purpose and responsibility. Seen in this light, hope involves treating the world not as a lost cause but as a space where real change is possible. When we adopt hope as more than a pleasant feeling, we become agents of transformation, using our abilities and resources to support others, challenge injustices, and build a sense of shared possibility.
As a counseling student, I like to see hope as a way of being in the world. It isn’t a tool that can be bought or a technique to be mastered. Hope, when deeply embedded in a client’s life, can serve as the bridge between their present struggles and future possibilities. It can fuel them with the courage to embrace hard and painful conversations, take small steps toward adaptive ways of being, thinking, and acting, and continue their ongoing journey of growth.
This series will continue by spotlighting how hope is also a stand against despair, a guiding commitment with the power to shape both personal growth and collective progress.
If you would like to receive my blog posts in your inbox, please enter your email address below.
I will see you next week!
Roque Neto 