Daily Catholic Lectio
Mon, 18 May 2026
Seventh Week of Easter
Ac 19:1-8. Jn 16:29-33
Take Courage
Today’s Gospel gives us one of the most consoling words of Jesus: “In the world you will have trouble. But take courage; I have conquered the world.” These words belong to the farewell discourse of Jesus. He speaks them not in a moment of comfort, but on the eve of His passion. He knows that the disciples will be scattered. He knows that fear will enter their hearts. He knows that suffering will come. Yet He does not say, “You will have no trouble.” He says, “Take courage.”
This is very important. Jesus does not promise a world without suffering. He promises courage in the midst of suffering. The Christian life is not an escape from pain, confusion, sickness, fear, or death. It is the grace to stand firm within them. The presence of Jesus does not always remove the storm, but it gives the heart the strength to walk through the storm.
In Saint John’s Gospel, the word “world” has two meanings. Sometimes it means the world as God’s beloved creation, the place where God works and reveals His love. At other times, it means the world opposed to God: the power of sin, falsehood, darkness, and death. When Jesus says, “In the world you will have trouble,” He speaks of our real human condition. But when He says, “I have conquered the world,” He speaks of His victory over evil, sin, and death. His victory is our hope.
This is why Christian courage is different from ordinary bravery. It is not mere human confidence. It is not pretending that pain does not exist. Christian courage is born from faith in the Risen Lord. If Jesus, our brother and Lord, has conquered the world, then we too can share in His victory. We may still suffer, but suffering will not have the final word. We may still fall, but despair will not be our destiny. We may still carry wounds, but grace will make them fruitful.
The Second Vatican Council reminds us that without God’s help, people can become crushed by suffering. Without the hope of eternal life, the great questions of life, death, guilt, and pain can lead to despair. This is true even today. Many people are tired, anxious, confused, and afraid. Some suffer from illness. Some suffer from inner restlessness. Some suffer because they cannot make decisions. Some do not know where to go, what to do, or how to continue. Into all these situations Jesus says: “Take courage.”
There is a beautiful story about the French painter Auguste Renoir. Toward the end of his life, he suffered greatly from illness. His hands trembled with pain, yet he continued to paint. A friend once asked him, “Why do you still paint in such pain?” Renoir smiled and said, “The pain passes, but the beauty remains.” This is a deeply Christian insight. Pain is real, but it is not eternal. Suffering is heavy, but it can become the path through which beauty, maturity, and holiness are born.
Saint Paul says the same truth in the Letter to the Romans: “We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope; and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts” (Rm 5:3-5).
The first reading prepares us for the Pentecost Sunday. Paul asks the believers at Ephesus, ‘Were you baptized by the Holy Spirit?’ They reply, ‘We have not even heard that there exists the Holy Spirit.’ Often times, the Holy Spirit is forgotten in our day to day faith life. Let us get connected to him again.
Fr Yesu Karunanidhi
Archdiocese of Madurai
An initiative of “Yesni Prays”
Yesu Karunanidhi 
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