Pope's Next Encyclical on ... Hope?(!)

From Italian reports, through Kreuz.net (German), and translated by Cathcon (thanks!):

All are expecting a social encyclical from the Pope very soon. But it won't be quite what was expected.

On which encyclical did the Pope work on the summer?

The Pope is writing an encyclical about hope. The Roman daily paper `the IL Messaggero' stated yesterday in an exclusive report.

To date, all had counted on the fact that the next teaching letter of the Pope will be a social encyclical .

But IL Messaggero knows now that the encyclical which is already nearly finished will be on hope.

It will appear before the social encyclical, of which Pope Benedikt XVI. while on his holidays in Lorenzago di Cadore had previously spoken to journalists.

It was not then known that the Pope in the silence of his alpine chalet wrote about hope.

Hope is that theological virtue, which refers to the longing of Christians for the highest blessedness in heaven.

`IL Messaggero' believes that this topic is relevant in times of uncertainty and relativism.

The newspaper mentions that the Pope deplored two years ago in a speech to the Mexican bishops that hope is exposed to a hard counter wind in view of the variable and complex present day conditions which also affect the church.

Thus the Pope appears to address also by this means the church collapse, which is not only limited to the rich countries of the western hemisphere.

The Pope would like to invite in his encyclical - according to Il Messaggero - to hope.

Christians are not to let themselves be frightened by pessimism, nihilism and human failure.

Friedrich Nietzche scoffed that hope is "the virtue of the weak“, as she distances Christians from "world progress“- `Il Messaggero':

The Pope has answered nihilism which which has been criticised again and again by him, with an encyclical.

The title of the teaching letter will depend on its first words.

According to the informration of `Il Messaggero', this has not yet definitely been decided on.

Also the publication date has not been publicly fixed.

Drew of the Whappsters adds:

I would not be surprised if the two rumored encyclicals are actually one and the same [previous rumors focused on a social topic as its subject]. Before Deus Caritas Est, we were told to expect a commentary on 1 John: it included some 1 John, but was more expansive than a simple commentary on 1 John. Perhaps, then, an encyclical on hope would also explore the social aspects of hope? It would not at all be difficult, as the social thought of il grande John Paul emphasized that labor which is divorced from the reverence and worship of God is cruel reduces man to an oppressive hopelessness.

... A number of people have pointed out that if there is an encyclical on hope, then we have a pattern: First Love, then Hope, then... Faith?

Previous posts on possible topics for Pope Benedict's next encyclical:

• September 23rd, 2007 "UK tabloid claim: "Pope to make climate action a moral obligation"
• August 15th, 2007
• June 20th, 2006

More as I hear it.