COVID 19: A Recipe for True Awakening?

A Paradox: Will being forced apart bring us closer together?

So much has changed in the past two weeks. It is very unsettling. My faith informs me not to be anxious, but to look to God for our deliverance. But it also tells me to put my faith into action: to help those who are most vulnerable, those least capable of helping themselves. I look in the mirror and am reminded that my next birthday will be my 76th. Experts say my wife, who is just six months ahead of me, and I are among the most vulnerable. But I am in very good health, so I do not feel vulnerable. My military history (the old Colonel) informs me that I should be on the front lines, helping others. Mother Teresa’s life took a radical turn when she came upon a seemingly lifeless body in the street, and despite her understandable fears, she stopped and made personal contact with the person in need, who was very sick but still alive. Her faith and sense of calling overcame her fear.

Followers of Jesus need not fear contracting a deadly disease, because in the most meaningful sense, they have already died. Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Spiritually, my faith and surrender of will to Christ link me to him in his death, his burial and his resurrection (as symbolized by immersion baptism). I understand that to many this may seem illusory, but to me it is very real. So it makes a big difference in how I see the current pandemic.

Stop for a few moments and notice how much has changed:

—Some of the most popular “gods“ in America have been virtually shut down (sports and entertainment).

—Schools and offices are being closed, forcing greater levels of proximity among families.

—Large gatherings and conferences, and much travel have been curtailed...nudging us towards greater connectivity with neighbors and family members. Churches are streaming services live, and small groups of church members are gathering in homes (as in the first century).

—The stock market has tanked, another “god” and false security system by the wayside.

—Government officials seem incapable of rationally dealing with the pandemic.

—Ordinary citizens, including many Christ followers, are volunteering in droves to help fill gaps in safety nets that no longer function (eg., distributing food to needy students who formerly received cost free food at public schools).

—Restaurants and bars are closing, forcing us to eat and drink at home (with family and friends).

After the 9/11 attacks, there was a brief period when we all came together, partisan wrangling dissipated, and racial, economic and ethnic divides seemed to fade into the smoke, shock and anger that enveloped our country. People from different backgrounds actually came together. Thousands of young adults enlisted in our armed forces. We were together. Until weeks later I was watching a professional football game where the crowd showed its anger at the referee and other officials by hurling beer bottles and cans onto the playing field. Sadly, it became clear that our brief honeymoon of kindness and unity was history.

Our current political environment is so divided as to be toxic. Our people have hidden behind the perceived protective shield of the internet and social networking to communicate words of hate and division. The KKK is back out in the open in parts of the country. White supremacists (usually disaffected young white men without jobs or any real stake in our economy) are publicly identifying with Adolph Hitler and his quest to build a master race free of Jews and other minorities. Unfortunately, there is an element of evangelical Christianity that overlaps with these extremist movements. We live as if it doesn’t really matter if others suffer, as long as we are OK. People around the country are lining up to buy guns, as if we were on the verge of civil war or anarchy. Truth has become a casualty of our national political discourse. Our archaic political system seems incapable of coming together to accomplish essential public needs. And our President, sadly, is incapable of leading us to a greater sense of security, unity and harmony.

How will we use the extra time we now have? Will families actually sit down at the dinner table and share life (setting aside cell phones and earphones)? Will students learn more through remote systems, where teachers will no longer have to deal with disruptive students and others who distract them? Will parents get more involved in their children’s learning? Will neighbors come together in small groups to assist and encourage each other? Will parents read to their young children and teach them life lessons?

When I lived in a remote area of former Soviet Central Asia, I got a glimpse of how families in nineteenth

century America shared life together. There was no television to speak of, nor radio worth listening to. Families and friends shared meals around large tables, and entertained each other by telling stories, singing songs, reading poems and playing musical instruments. Everyone contributed, including young children. It was an amazing experience to see and feel. Often these meals lasted several hours, with a bathroom break in the middle (to the outhouse, with your own toilet tissue and flashlight). Families always kept a large cast iron pot on the stove with hot soup, waiting for guests to drop by. Everyone shared. It was beautiful. I learned so much from these dear people, who loved me as family, protected me and included me in their cultural celebrations. Time did not matter. Anything less than an hour was deemed “German time,” implying minutes and seconds did not matter, and relationships were more important than time.

My prayer is that God will use the current pandemic to shake us all up, to draw us near to those things in life that are most important, identify greed for the evil it is, and awaken his people to the truths that we were never intended to live as self centered, independent agents seeking our own version of heaven on earth (where pleasure abounds and suffering is eliminated as much as humanly possible). True joy is in giving, in loving others as ourselves, and finding ways to help our fellow man. And most importantly, in finding true peace with the God who created us and designed us to live in interdependent communities.

To heal our divisions and bring us closer together. Please join me in that prayer.