Oh brother here I go. Possibly one of those posts that will get me in trouble. So be it. As a spouse of someone who was under extreme suspicion of having Covid-19(and thanks be to God she did not) don't tell me this is not real, or its getting better, or its about to go away. And quit with all the comparisons with flu and H1N1, not fair or equal comparisons. And don't tell me it's time to get everyone packed back into our Churches and have mass Communions in parking lots and so much other foolishness. No! Absolutely not.
As a Catholic Deacon I read with great sadness that there are some cracks appearing in the Body of Christ. An entire diocese allowed to hand out Jesus in Holy Communion in the parking lot or street, folks walking in to pray in an unlocked church and stumble into a private mass, begging the Priest to hand out communion, a non denominational church in the Baton Rouge area with a Pastor preaching this is a sham so over 300 gather to do their thing, and now the Governor of Virginia threatening any church and it's members who gather in numbers larger than 10. Let that sink in. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy.
I am not downplaying the absolute heart break and profound sadness of the many Catholics at the loss of being at Mass and physically receiving Holy Communion. I get it. I miss some of my duties and responsibilities as a Permanent Deacon. Yet this current event and its limitations makes me no less a Deacon. Same for all of us; we are no less Catholic because we are being obedient to our civil and ecclesial authorities during a 100% valid health care emergency; a life threatening emergency. And a health care crisis fueled by more unanswered questions than answers.
As a Catholic, this time of separation has been a time of great spiritual growth for many. Realizing what and Who we are missing, a great spiritual hunger, a holy reawakening for Christ and His Church, our faith is springing up everywhere. Many who have self confessed their recent luke-warmness and even a few atheists have acknowledged this crisis, with all it's limitations and restrictions, has helped them increase their faith and even return to the faith. The really great parishes, clergy, pastors and even laity have found a way to use social media and video technology to bring us all day everyday the Mass, the Stations of the Cross, Liturgy of the Hours, the Rosary, spiritual music, Adoration and Benediction. We are witnessing extraordinary things that maybe, in hindsight, we should have been doing all along. For example, my parish Priest along with a brother Deacon took the Blessed Sacrament across the geography of the parish limits offering blessings along the way. Wow!
Our body of Bishops needs to stand firm and follow the proper medical, scientific and yes, government entities and quit caving. Exceptions here and exceptions there will do nothing but enhance the chances of illness, sickness and possibly death. Now as a Christian we do not fear death, but we are not called to hasten it. There is much to be said for the extreme holiness coming from this crisis and if staying away from one another, not exposing one another and our clergy from danger than that is justice, holy justice.
By the way, getting political if I may, I like this current President, even with all his flaws. While I just advocated for listening to governmental authority I will say that even the President has no idea when we will return to "normal". In case you do not already understand the constant moving parts of this crisis, there will NOT be public celebrations of the Mass, or anything else, in the Archdiocese of New Orleans for Easter or Holy Week. Not that much promises to be different from March 28th and April 12th.
Stay and stand firm dear Catholics. Continue the many holy and spiritual practices that are now the new normal. As stated earlier, perhaps these are all things we should have been doing all along. In addition to the many things we all are doing, let's remember to daily pray our Spiritual Communion, download and watch the special blessings, homily and prayers from Pope Francis yesterday, download and pray the Litany of Humility, pray an Act of Contrition often, learn and pray the Liturgy of the Hours(LOH), and then do our part for one another; check on your neighbor, buy some supplies for nursing homes and senior living facilities, buy from a local small business, cut the grass for someone who can't, be present to another without violating social distancing.
Pray and holy desire, spiritual hunger, will be our hope and get us through this. But prematurely gathering for Mass and other events in large numbers will bring us grief. There is a time for everything under the heavens; this is a time of patience, understanding and holy submission. And in great joy, soon there will be a time for public worship and Holy Communion.
Stay/stand firm!
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