Get Ready for a new Encyclical

According to Marco Tosatti of La Stampa, we’re about to see a new encyclical from B16, and it will likely be out before Christmas. It will deal with hope, which makes sense after his encyclical about charity, though some had imagined that his second encyclical would be on social doctrine. We can hope for that too. The provisional title is Spes salvis, which literally means “saved by hope” or “saved thanks to hope”. It would seem that the Pope worked on it over the summer and that it is now being translated. The Pope will apparently reflect on words of St. Paul about hope, especially in opposition to the Nietzschen belief that hope is for mere weaklings. Isn’t it true that we need someone to perk us up from the pervading temptation of cynicism that we’re all prone to? This will be a wonderful read for Christmas.