When did giving hope become wrong?
I recall an episode of the TV series Honesto . In one powerful scene, Lourdes—the adoptive mother—is anxious because her son longs to know his real father. She is disturbed that people around the child are giving him hope. Then her old father, Lemuel, gently but firmly confronts her and asks: "When did it become bad to give hope?" Lourdes answers defensively, "When you know there is no hope!" But Lemuel looks at her and says with wisdom: "There is always hope. Just be afraid of losing the child."
That question echoes in our hearts today: When did hope become something to fear?
The Feast of the Epiphany gives us a clear answer: it is never wrong to give hope. What is wrong is extinguishing hope out of fear, insecurity, or selfishness.
Star of Hope in a Dark World. In today's Gospel (Mt 2:1-12), a star appears—a star of hope . It leads the wise men through darkness, uncertainty, and long journeys until they find the Child, Jesus. This star announces that God has entered history , that light has broken into the night, and that salvation is not only for Israel but for all nations .
Yet not everyone welcomed this hope.
King Herod, the most powerful man in the land, was deeply troubled. Why? Because hope threatens those who cling to power, control, and fear. What was good news for the poor and the searching became a danger for the insecure. So Herod plotted death instead of welcoming life.
Here we see a painful truth: hope can be resisted —especially by those who benefit from darkness.
The Enemies of Hope: Fear, Resignation, and Pessimism. If we are honest, sometimes we are like Herod . Sometimes we are like Lourdes before her awakening. We hesitate to allow others to hope.
What are the enemies of hope today?
Fatalistic resignation : "This is just life." We tell ourselves and others that poverty, corruption, injustice, and violence are unchangeable—that this is our destiny.
Defeatist pessimism : We no longer believe that honesty can triumph, that leaders can be accountable, that peace is possible. Everything is mocked, doubted, and dismissed.
Crab mentality and fear of being left behind : When someone tries to rise, to change, to dream, we pull them down—because their hope exposes our own fear.
These attitudes become especially dangerous amid the current struggles of our country--- corruption that steals from the future of our children; workers and farmers barely surviving; families burdened by rising prices and job insecurity; young people tempted to leave the country—or worse, to give up on life.
When hope is crushed, despair grows. And despair is not from God.
Becoming Missionaries and Stars of Hope. The Epiphany invites us to make a choice: Will we be Herods—or wise men?
The wise men did not stop at darkness. They journeyed . They searched . They trusted the light they were given , even if it was just a star.
Hope is not passive. Hope walks. Hope seeks. Hope believes that God is already at work, even when we do not yet see the full picture.
Pope Francis, in his Bull for the Jubilee of Hope, reminds us: "Hope does not disappoint, because it is born of love and grounded in the love that flows from the pierced heart of Jesus." This is why Christian hope survives corruption, poverty, and suffering—because it is anchored not in politics or power, but in Christ.
To be Christians today is to be missionaries of hope : In our families, by refusing to give up on one another; in our communities, by choosing honesty over convenience; in our nation, by believing that change is possible and working for it; in our Church, by pointing people not to ourselves, but to Christ.
When we carry Christ in our hearts, we ourselves become stars —guiding those who are lost, comforting those who are tired, and reminding those in darkness that God has not abandoned them.
It is never wrong to give hope. Hope is lost only when we surrender to fear and despair. As we celebrate this Epiphany, may we seek the Lord like the wise men and dare to become bearers of hope in a wounded world. To those walking in darkness today, may they find light in us.
When did it become a bad thing to give hope? Never. Because our hope is the Lord.
