The other day, I was walking down our street following my 2 year old as he joyfully ran through the fallen leaves. At thirty-seven weeks pregnant, I am sure I looked a little funny as I tried to keep up with him. An older gentleman walked by, and my son, being the friendly little man that he is, said “hi!” enthusiastically. The man stopped, looked at us both, and said “boy, you sure are lucky!” I replied to him that I felt very blessed, and we both continued on our way. 

As we are in our Jubilee year, we get the chance to reflect on how we are pilgrims of hope. As I reflected on my brief outdoor encounter, I found myself in awe at the hope that children bring into the world. My little toddler is bursting with life and joy, and my new baby is a sign that I believe life is a gift. We live in a world where many people do not have hope, especially not for a good future. As Pope Francis said in the Bull of Induction for the Jubilee Year, “people [...] are discouraged, pessimistic and cynical about the future, as if nothing could possibly bring them happiness.” This is one reason that many people are choosing not to have children. 

So how can we, as parents, live out the call to be pilgrims of hope? 

The first thing is to simply be who we are. Having children is a sign of hope in and of itself. For “Hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come.” Even though parenting can be monotonous and difficult at times, we remember that the call to raise holy children is one that will echo throughout the ages. Many people in our day and age see children in a largely negative light, treating them as burdens to both their parents and to the environment. We can contradict these anti-life views by living out our expectation that children are a gift and carry hope into the future. We are reminded in the Bull of Induction that “the desire of young people to give birth to new sons and daughters as a sign of the fruitfulness of their love ensures a future for every society. This is a matter of hope: it is born of hope and it generates hope.” 

Another thing we can do is choose to trust God amongst a culture that can feel scary. Everyday, we are inundated with opinions from the media, self-help books and perhaps friends and family, telling us that we as parents need to be doing this or that in order to give our children a “good life.” Hope calls us to lean on the foundational truth that our children are ultimately in God’s hands. If we follow our prayerful instincts on raising our children, the rest is up to God. Surrendering in this way can help us move past the fear that we may have about messing our children up or allowing the wrong influences in their lives, and move into the freedom of believing that God has a future full of hope in store for our children. 

Being a pilgrim of hope also means that we are called to courageously fight for the faith of our children. In a world that normalizes sin and celebrates self-centeredness, it can seem daunting to raise our children to love Jesus and his Church. Again, the first thing we can do as parents is to trust that God will give us the grace and the practical tools to do our best as parents. One of the practical things that I do is surround my family with other families who can encourage my husband, myself, and our kids in our faith. There is nothing more encouraging for me personally than spending time with other parents and children who are committed to their faith.This may be in a parish setting, or something less formal. It is especially encouraging to interact with families that are further along in their parenting, so that we can lean on them for advice and support as different situations come up over the years. In this way, community is essential to hope as we strive to raise our children in this culture.

Lastly, we can choose to be joyful and share openly with those around us about our choice to be parents. As a young parent, I often find it challenging to participate in certain programs or volunteer within the Church. However, I believe that it is essential that families be missionaries to those around them. Sometimes that means just showing up to daily Mass with my toddler, who gives bright smiles to the many older folks attending. 

In this Jubilee year, it could also mean looking at what is offered in our parish, and asking the Holy Spirit to inspire us with opportunities to reach out to other parents who may feel isolated. Does your parish have a mom and tot group? Children’s liturgy? A rosary brunch for Mom’s? All of these can be ways that we may be able to serve within the season of parenthood. It is these kinds of initiatives that may attract and bring hope to those who feel alone in their journey of parenthood. We, as pilgrims, can come alongside them, bringing hope and joy. And in the process of being witnesses of hope, we ourselves will find the joy and peace that comes from living out our faith. 

I’ll close with a final quote from the Bull of Induction, as Pope Francis encourages us in this Jubilee: 

Let us return to Scripture and realize that it speaks to us in these words: “May we who have taken refuge in him be strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us. We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered” (Heb 6:18-20). Those words are a forceful encouragement for us never to lose the hope we have been given, to hold fast to that hope and to find in God our refuge and our strength. (25)