Editorial October 17, 1988 Issue

A future worth hoping for—a future worth working for

William E. Moody

In his novel Les Misérables, Victor Hugo tells of the terrible plight of the many poor and homeless people of France in the early 1800s and of the ongoing human struggle for freedom, equality, and dignity.

At one point, Hugo writes: "Will the future ever arrive? ... Should we continue to look upwards? Is the light we can see in the sky one of those which will presently be extinguished? The ideal is terrifying to behold, lost as it is in the depth, small, isolated, a pin-point, brilliant but threatened on all sides by the dark forces that surround it: nevertheless, no more in danger than a star in the jaws of the clouds."

From the most common of human perspectives, the future often seems uncertain, at times holding out little promise, perhaps stark and bleak, perhaps hopeless. Yet there are those who can look through the haze and darkness and see a light still shining. These are people of courage who somehow know that even if the light seems threatened by sadness and misery, darkness cannot really overwhelm the light—that the light is actually "no more in danger than a star in the jaws of the clouds." For, after all, clouds finally dissipate, blow away on the wind; and the star remains, shining.

Enjoy 1 free Sentinel article or audio program each month, including content from 1898 to today.

Send a comment to the editors
NEXT IN THIS ISSUE
Article
Overcoming giants
October 17, 1988
Contents

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit