Written in 12 days and short enough to read in two sittings (one if you wish), Catholicism in the Time of Coronavirus explores the spiritual pains of the Church in lockdown (especially in the US and the UK) and shares a glimpse of its immediate future based on the present moments and on the past. Authored by Dr. Stephen Bullivant, a convert to the faith and an expert in Catholic disaffiliation, this free e-book (which you can get here) was first published in May 2020, at a time when churches in the Philippines were closed and many Filipino Catholics were starting to feel the loss in not receiving the sacraments. The book seemed relevant that time.
Nearly a year after, however, and with lockdowns generally lifted in most parts of the world, does the message of Catholicism in the Time of Coronavirus still matter? The answer is yes. Not because this strain of coronavirus wreaking havoc in all parts of the globe has not yet been expunged from the face of the earth (and, as if the damage is not yet enough, has even mutated). It is because parishioner disengagement—the withdrawal of individuals from involvement in any parish, church, or religious activity—and its consequences have never been more pressing. Even if the 21-repetitions-to make-a-habit belief is considered a myth, think of what 12 months without (or limited) physical reception of the sacraments, live attendance in Mass, or face-to-face socialization with friends can do. A priest might ask, “Will my parishioners return?” or “How many would?”
While the reality of disengagement and lukewarmness is painful, the book intends to show the great opportunities for spiritual growth in these trying times and how, time and again, Catholic Christians have risen to occasions similar to this pandemic because, as St. Pope John Paul II said, “we are the Easter people and Alleluia is our song!”
Three ideas stood out for me in this e-book:
1. In tough times, Christians do not run away. They choose to be living witnesses of the faith.
When a severe unknown sickness swept throughout the Roman Empire in the late 240s AD, fear gripped the hearts of the inhabitants of the important trading hub of Carthage in modern-day Tunisia. Who would not be afraid when close contact with an infected person may cause the decomposition of your extremities? St. Pontius, who served that time as deacon under the bishop St. Cyprian, described how everyone fled, “as if with the exclusion of the person who was sure to die of the plague, one could also exclude death itself,” he said.
The Christians in Carthage “were a notable exception to this general trend,” Bullivant remarked. A good number of the brethren “stayed behind to nurse any in need, irrespective of their faith.” St. Dionysius, bishop of Alexandria around that time, also wrote of the surpassing love and kindness that most of the Christians in Alexandria showed to those who were sick. “They held fast to each other and visited the sick fearlessly, and ministered to them continually, serving them in Christ,” the North African bishop reported.
This was neither the first nor the last pestilence where the brunt of shouldering the corporal works of mercy for the sick and the dying was left to the Christians of that time, at the expense of their own lives and limbs. They too must have felt scared for the welfare of their families, but greater was their faith. Their heroism led to the conversion of many pagans who saw them continuously caring for the sick, burying the dead, and gathering all those who were hungry to feed them.
This scenario could not be far from what we have been seeing during this coronavirus pandemic. The symptoms of COVID-19 may be different from those experienced in the third century, but we have seen millions of individuals succumbing to it just the same, and we are still counting. The loss of lives, the strains at work and in the family, and the privation among the poor are simply immeasurable. Yet, we have to be thankful for having frontliners and volunteers who are more trained than their counterparts 1,800 years ago but who still mirror the Christians of old in their tenacity, forbearance, and fidelity to their calling to serve their neighbors who are in need. Though much is to be desired in the general state of affairs in the country, there are also so many things to be grateful for: to name a few, strangers feed the needy, donations continue to pour in, select local officials carry their mandates well, the spiritual needs of the faithful can now be attended to in-person, and businesses are slowly opening up. And this 2021, on the 500th year of the arrival of Christianity in the Philippines, graces abound all the more.
“If we look around at the waves, we will sink,” Word on Fire founder Bishop Robert Barron said in his foreword to the book. “But if we keep our eyes fixed on Him, we will walk on the water.”
2. We can do a lot of good even (or more so) at home.
The confinement due to the community quarantines have re-introduced parents to the concept of the family not only as “the first school” but also as “a domestic church.” The parents’ role of educating their children in the faith has become more pressing as schools and churches are not fully available for religious education.
It does not come easy, to say the least. The need for parents to attend more closely to their children’s spiritual life comes at a time when, according to Bullivant, parents appear “to be less and less up to doing the job.” Prior to the pandemic, parents mostly delegated to the school or the church their own duty of transmitting their faith to their offspring. Today, not only are parents preoccupied with their children’s needs 24/7 but they are also worried about their job security and therefore of the future of the entire family, and never has the balancing act between work and family affairs been more strenuous than ever, especially for work-from-home parents.
Bullivant reminds the readers, however, that the bringing up of children in the faith need not be a one-man act. Grandparents, godparents, uncles, aunts, mentors, friends, and community leaders all have a share in the formation of children. Grandparents, in particular, who have been recently honored by Pope Francis with the declaration of the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly every fourth Sunday of July, are called upon by the Pope “to pass on to the young the experience of life and faith.” The pontiff regards the voice of the elderly as precious “because it sings the praises of God and preserves the roots of the peoples.”
Parents and relatives can start by teaching the children basic prayers for set moments of the day, like the prayers before and after meals, or the Angel of God prayer in the morning or at night. With the proliferation of free Catholic materials online, there cannot be a dearth of fun activities for children of all ages and of guides for parents. And if children cannot be brought to the church yet to attend Mass, then the church can be brought home through the livestreamed Masses, Bullivant commented.
Being cooped at home has its drawbacks, but it is also a great opportunity to grow “on the inside” (not only for the children but also for you), to pass on or build new family traditions (What did you do to celebrate Christmas 2020?), and to create beautiful memories from teachable moments that make childhood a wonder.
3. We are not alone.
No, it is not the same as the I-see-dead-people one-liner of The Sixth Sense fame. It is more like having “friends in high places”—the “pandemic-relevant saints,” as Bullivant calls them—who had been through what we are experiencing right now and would be more than happy to plead to God on our behalf. You may want to read about St. Charles Borromeo, who tried to feed more than 60,000 people daily during the plague and famine of 1576, and St. Bernardine of Siena, who, at the age of 20, ran a hospital for four months when the plague hit his hometown.
Two discoveries for me from Bullivant’s list are Blessed Engelmar Unzeitig and St. Kateri Tekakwitha. The Czech-born priest was imprisoned at the Dachau concentration camp for his defense of the Jews. He volunteered to care for the sick when typhoid fever hit the camp, and he later contracted the disease. He died on March 2, 1945, the day after his 34th birthday. Fr. Engelmar was later known as the “Angel of Dachau.” St. Kateri Tekakwitha, on the other hand, lost her parents and a brother in a smallpox epidemic. She too contracted the disease, which left permanent scars on her face and an impaired eyesight. She converted to Catholicism at the age of 19 and escaped from her Mohawk Indian village when staying there proved to be dangerous to her call to perpetual virginity. She dedicated her life in penance and prayer and died at the age of 24. She is the first Native American to be canonized.
We also cannot fail to consider as our companions in this fight against COVID-19 those whom Pope Francis calls “the saints next door,” the ordinary men and women around us who exert effort to do their work well so that things can be a little better for us. They can be the doctors, nurses, firefighters, uniformed personnel, grocery cashiers, jeepney drivers, security guards, or meat vendors we exchange pleasantries with. If only we could be next-door saints to other persons, then the burdens of this pandemic will be a little easier to shoulder. A huge shout out also to our teachers who did not leave their students alone in braving the new normal, come what may.
May these lines from the poem of St. John Henry Newman remind us to seek refuge in Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life when our eyes of faith are darkened and there is no one to guide us.
Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom
Lead Thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home—
Lead Thou me on!
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene—one step enough for me.
References:
Bullivant, S. (2020). Catholicism in the time of coronavirus. Word on Fire Catholic Ministries.
Catholic News Agency. (n.d.). St. Kateri Tekakwitha. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-kateri-tekakwitha-521
Fiorito, M. H. (n.d.). Blessed Engelmar Unzeitig: A patron at the time of an outbreak. Simply Catholic.
https://simplycatholic.com/blessed-engelmar-unzeitig-a-patron-at-the-time-of-an-outbreak/
Franciscan Media. (n.d.). Saint of the day: Saint Bernardine of Siena. https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-bernardine-of-siena
Franciscan Media. (n.d.). Saint of the day: Saint Charles Borromeo. https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-charles-borromeo
Franciscan Media. (n.d.). Saint of the day: Saint Kateri Tekakwitha. https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-kateri-tekakwitha
Vatican News. (31 January 2021). Pope establishes World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2021-01/pope-establishes-world-day-for-grandparents-and-the-elderly.html
Banner photo by Tom Swinnen from Pexels.
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