ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author argues that hope is necessary for well-being. Implicit in the Greek myth of ‘Pandora’s box’ is the idea that hope is a curse, and that the people are better without it. For Augustine, hope was integral to the people understanding of the virtues of faith and love: Only if one loves the future fulfilment of God’s will, and thus hopes for it, can one arrive at the correct form of faith. Before identifying and examining some of the things the people need to do, let the author respond to the claim that the problem with this diagnosis of the people condition is that it is based on false premise or, more specifically, that it is simply not true that the people lack an object for hope. The hope would be that, as more people become engaged, involved, informed, and energized, institutional reform will follow, which will then have the effect of encouraging more involvement.
