The ninth of August 2026 spells “Courage.” It was on this day in 1942 that the Quit India Movement went into action and thousands of freedom fighters who were on the streets were arrested. The previous day, August 8, at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee, Mahatma Gandhi introduced a resolution to start the Quit India Movement.
His was a clarion call: loud, determined, unequivocal and without compromise. India had suffered enough at the hands of its colonial masters. It was time for freedom.
Later, Gandhi gave a fiery speech at Mumbai’s Gowalia Tank Maidan, now known as August Kranti Maidan, where he gave his famous call: “Do or die.” The next day, the uprising had begun. Thousands took to the streets, demanding that the British leave India immediately and unconditionally. Most of the leaders, who came from all strata of society, were arrested. These were courageous leaders, ready to sacrifice their lives for the country.
The ninth of August 2026 spells “Courage.” That is what epitomized a woman like St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, Edith Stein.
Born on October 12, 1891, into an observant Jewish family in Germany, Edith Stein became an agnostic in her youth and a passionate seeker of truth. At the age of 14, she consciously and deliberately stopped praying. She wanted to rely exclusively on herself and was determined to exercise her freedom in making decisions about her life.
At the end of a long journey, she came to a courageous and path-breaking realization: only those who commit themselves to the love of Christ become truly free.
In 1922, at the age of 30, she embraced Catholicism. Twelve years later, she followed the path of St. Teresa of Avila by becoming a Carmelite and taking the name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. She publicly advocated women's education and rights and had the courage to speak against the evil of Nazism.
In 1942, she was arrested by the Nazis from her Carmelite monastery in the Netherlands, deported to Auschwitz and killed in a gas chamber on August 9. Today, she is revered as a saint of the Catholic Church and as a witness to truth, courage and faith.
The ninth of August 2026 spells “Courage.” Yet this date also carries the painful cry of Nagasaki.
On August 9, 1945, just three days after Hiroshima was devastated by an atomic bomb, Nagasaki suffered the same inhuman tragedy. The bomb was dropped at 11:02 a.m. The explosion unleashed the equivalent force of thousands of tons of TNT and killed tens of thousands of people.
The pain, suffering, destruction and death remain forever etched in human memory. The nuclear bomb must be abhorred. The world said: “Never Again!”
Yet today, wars and violence continue in Ukraine, Gaza, Iran, Lebanon and elsewhere. Ordinary people continue to suffer, while the military-industrial complex profits from war. Our world desperately yearns for nonviolence, love and peace. Pope Leo XIV continues to call for peace.
The ninth of August 2026 spells “Courage.” This is also what the world’s indigenous peoples have demonstrated throughout history. August 9 is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
In India, indigenous communities continue to face displacement, the loss of forests and land, and the denial of their legitimate rights. There is often plenty of lip service and tokenism, while their jal, jungle aur jameen, water, forests and land, are taken away from them.
The late Jesuit Fr. Stan Swamy, who died in custody in 2021, had the courage to accompany indigenous people in their relentless struggle for identity and dignity. The indigenous communities of Manipur, particularly the Kuki-Zo people, have faced violence, displacement and hostility since May 2023.
Indigenous peoples are the original inhabitants of the land and forests. What they demand are their legitimate rights to live in a society based on justice, equality and fraternity.
The ninth of August 2026 spells “Courage.” Every year, on the second Sunday of August, the Catholic Church in India observes National Youth Sunday. This year, it falls on August 9. Its theme is “Take Courage! I Have Overcome the World” (John 16:33), also the theme of World Youth Day Seoul 2027, which will be held in South Korea from August 3–8, 2027.
The image of David confronting Goliath remains a powerful symbol for young people. David was a shepherd boy, but he had courage because he knew God was on his side.
Today, how many of our young people have the courage to take on the forces of hatred, fundamentalism, fanaticism, injustice and violence in our world?
The ninth of August 2026 spells “Courage.” May the courage of Mahatma Gandhi , Edith Stein, Stan Swamy inspire our young people to stand for truth, justice, dignity and peace.
