By Fr. Frederick Edlefsen

“Do not let your hearts be troubled.” Jesus spoke these words at the Last Supper, despite all the troubles his apostles were about to experience. The last thing he said to them before raising his eyes to heaven and making his famous High Priestly Prayer (John 17) was, “In the world you have trouble, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” Jesus suggests that earthly troubles are not obstacles to his peace. Earthly suffering and heavenly peace are not contradictories. Jesus even says this in the Beatitudes: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be consoled.”

On a human level, it's impossible not to be troubled – unless you are part ostrich. Conflicts in our own lives and in the world are bound to happen. Few problems seem to resolve. When a problem is resolved, another one comes up. Outcomes are unsure. This too is troubling. We all like peace of mind that comes from assurances of happy endings, even if those assurances are false. But certainty is not for this world.

Saint Augustine said that in days of bad fortune we desire good fortune, and in days of good fortune we fear bad fortune. Life is a wheel of fortune that keeps turning, and you can’t win for losing. Therefore, “our heart is restless until it rests in you,” said Augustine. Saint Thomas Aquinas said that perfect happiness is not possible in this life because not even the good things we possess are guaranteed. Our worldly fortunes are all built on weak and shifting sand.

So, Jesus points our hearts and hopes to heaven – to a Promise that come from beyond this world. Jesus tells us to look to himself, the solid rock upon which we can build the foundation for an eternal peace and happiness. “You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” He's going to prepare a place for us that is free of worry, anxiety, alarms, and fear – where you don’t have to lock your doors or buy insurance.

Authentic peace and happiness come from Somewhere Else. We can neither earn it nor take it. It’s pure gift. It can only be received. All suffering in this life is but a placeholder for the greatest Gifts that God wants to give us.