Daily Catholic Lectio
Fri, 24 Oct ‘25
Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time, Friday
Romans 7:18–25; Luke 12:54–59
Signs of the Time
In today’s Gospel, Jesus continues His teaching about the end times. He looks at the people around Him and says, “You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you do not know how to interpret this present time?”
They were wise enough to read the weather — to predict rain from the clouds or heat from the wind — but blind to the spiritual signs unfolding before them. The Savior was in their midst, yet they failed to recognize the time of God’s visitation. Jesus adds another lesson: “As you are going with your opponent to the magistrate, make an effort to settle the matter on the way.”
This image teaches the urgency of reconciliation — not to delay what must be resolved.
The Gospel thus presents two essential attitudes for discipleship: wisdom (discernment of the time) and speed (acting without delay).
(a) The wisdom to see what God is doing
Understanding the signs of the time begins with spiritual awareness — the ability to read what God is saying through the events around us. It is easy to analyse the economy, politics, or the weather, but difficult to discern what God is doing in our personal, ecclesial, or national life.
The call of Jesus is to look deeper: What is God asking of me in this season of my life? What grace is He offering through today’s challenges? What inner change is He inviting me to make right now? Like the signs of nature that prompt us to act quickly — gathering clothes before rain or closing windows before the storm — the signs of God’s Kingdom should make us adjust our priorities. When faith becomes routine, we miss the signs. When we are alert to grace, even the simplest events — a conversation, a failure, a new opportunity — can become God’s message.
(b) The speed to act when God speaks
Discernment without action is useless. That is why Jesus immediately follows with the parable of settling with the opponent before reaching the judge. In that culture, the longer one delayed justice, the heavier the punishment became. Likewise, in our spiritual life, the longer we delay reconciliation — with God or with others — the heavier the burden on our soul. Jesus invites us to act promptly — to forgive, to make peace, to repent, to reconcile. Delays create knots that are hard to untie later. What could have been a short conversation becomes years of silence; what could have been a small apology becomes a broken relationship. Understanding the signs of the time means knowing not only what to do, but when to do it. God’s grace often comes as a passing moment — once missed, it may not return.
(c) The struggle within: Paul’s inner battle
In the first reading, St. Paul speaks with great honesty: “I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do — this I keep on doing.” He feels the tension between knowing what is right and failing to live it. This is the inner conflict we all face — between discernment and execution, between intention and action. We may recognize God’s signs but lack the strength to respond. Paul concludes not with despair, but with gratitude: “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” It is Christ who delivers us from our weakness and gives us the grace to act decisively when the moment of truth arrives.
(d) The two virtues: discernment and readiness
Jesus calls us to unite wisdom and speed — to think clearly and move promptly. Wisdom without readiness leads to delay; readiness without wisdom leads to recklessness. The mature disciple blends both: a heart that listens deeply and hands that act swiftly.
Saint Anthony Mary Claret, whose memorial we celebrate today, was such a man. A bishop, missionary, and educator, he could read the needs of his time — illiteracy, poverty, indifference — and respond with missionary zeal. He didn’t wait for others to begin; he set fire to faith wherever he went.
To “read the signs of the time” is not about predicting the future; it is about recognizing God’s movement in the present. The challenge is to stay awake — to listen, discern, and act before it is too late. We are all walking toward the divine Judge. On the way, Jesus urges us: make peace, heal wounds, right wrongs, and choose grace. When we see the clouds of change, the winds of conscience, the stirrings of grace — let us not ignore them. Let us act with the wisdom of faith and the speed of love. Then, when we finally meet the Lord face to face, we can say with St. Paul: “Thanks be to God, who has delivered me through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Fr. Yesu Karunanidhi
Archdiocese of Madurai
Missionary of Mercy
Yesu Karunanidhi 
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