Category: COVID 19

COVID FATIGUE.  That is a term that seems permanently added to our collective vocabulary, much like social distancing and other related terms.  I can’t think of anyone who is NOT tired of the pandemic.  We are tired of wearing masks, staying at home, and in general refraining from doing things that seem natural or desirable. We all long to go back to a normal life – a life that is normal to us, and not the new normal that we hear so much about. We wish that the pandemic would just go away.

Today I’m going to vent about some things related to the pandemic that I am getting increasingly tired of. For one thing, I’m getting increasingly tired of those people whom I will refer to as nay sayers.  These folks continue to maintain that there is no pandemic – that all the commotion about COVID-19 is a master-minded conspiracy to control the world and its inhabitants.  Shutting down travel, telling us to stay home, making us wear masks in public, it’s all about taking away our rights and freedoms, according to these nay-sayers.

At first there were many people who thought and said that.  Now that the number of infections all over the world is continuing to escalate, fewer people maintain that position, but there are still a few who hang on to that notion.  They talk about infection numbers being manipulated or misrepresented, and they like to remind us about how many people die of cancer, suicide, drug overdose, heart disease and other “pre-existing causes”.  What these people don’t seem to “get” is that every death, by whatever means, is a tragedy for somebody.  They also don’t get that Covid-19 can indeed cause death – and very quickly in some cases.   Even if there is a pre-existing condition, when Covid 19 appears on the death certificate, it means that a cancer patient could still be alive, but for Covid 19. I’m tired of listening to the disrespectful way that these nay-sayers speak of those who have died.

I’m also tired of the many non-experts who pontificate about a lot of things that they know very little, or nothing at all about. People who know very little about medicine, or even science for that matter,  are getting on their soapbox to lecture us about a variety of subjects like the dangers of wearing a mask, and even the potential danger of taking a vaccine, or why it’s OK to ignore the advice of true medical experts about not singing in public or gathering in groups.  Yes, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, and everyone has the right to express that opinion, but since there are so many conflicting opinions on these matters, I’m not inclined to listen to every opinion, unless it comes from someone who is qualified.

Then there are the self-proclaimed legal experts who whine about how their charter rights are being violated by covid restrictions.  Most people who sound off about rights, think only about their own rights, and not those of everyone else.  These non-experts have never read the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that they like to talk about, and they don’t understand the simple concept that my rights end where the rights of someone else begin.  These people  have no legal training, and their only knowledge of the law is whatever they read on the internet.

And finally – and I have left this for the last – I’m tired of the non-theologians who (mis)quote the Bible and see in the pandemic all kinds of apocalyptic issues that are not there.  They talk about how the pandemic is a “dress rehearsal” for the world government of the Anti-Christ, and how the vaccines that have been developed contain some nefarious ingredient that will allow the government to track our every movement, or even worse that it is what the Bible calls “the mark of the beast”. We find these, and other notions expressed in videos of some Bible-waving or Bible-thumping TV preachers, and some people people post this stuff on social media.  I’m tired of that kind of preaching, and I’m embarrassed when I hear it from  preachers who should know better.

As a result of the pandemic, we have been exposed to more nonsense per square inch than I can tolerate.  So how do we defend ourselves against such poppycock?  For me there has been only one way that works.  I have no energy to fight it so I have chosen flight.  I distance myself from all propaganda that jeopardizes my mental health or my spiritual life, and from people who peddle it.

Now before you flood my email box with messages about freedom of speech, let me say that I am a huge believer of freedom of speech. Everyone is entitled to their own personal opinion about anything.  In a free society, you also have the right to express that opinion freely.  But I am not compelled to listen to it, or even expose myself to it.  That includes newscasts as well.  I hardly ever watch the TV news live. I record the daily newscasts from my favourite network(s).  I then watch them at a time that is convenient to me, and I make good use of the fast forward function of my remote control to avoid repetitive things that I’ve heard enough of.  That is my survival strategy against Covid fatigue.

 

 

Not too long ago I went into the church building where I currently serve as pastor in order to retrieve something from my office.  As I entered the foyer, I was saddened to see the monthly calendar of events for March 2020 on a table.  Not too far from it was the Sunday bulletin for March 17 – the last public worship service held at the church.

For the last 7 weeks I have been conducting worship, and preaching sermons from my home, seated in front of either a telephone or now a computer. I am able to speak to everyone who wants to participate at the same time, and I could hear, and now even see them.  Of course, it is not the same as having them sitting in front of me, but it is better than no contact at all.  During these online services, we pray, read Scripture, make announcements, greet one another, and preach and listen to sermons.  Many churches all over the world are doing the same thing. My heart almost skipped a beat when I saw one of my former students in Kenya preaching on FACEBOOK LIVE.

Here in Ontario Canada, much of life the way we know it has ground to a halt. Borders are closed to international travel.  Restaurants, stores, and businesses are closed.  Except for those who are considered “essential services” – grocery stores, gas stations, pharmacies, and believe it or not, liquor stores are considered an essential service.  But not churches or other places of worship.

Amazingly, churches, synagogues, and mosques have cooperated almost across the board with the government order that forbids the gathering of groups larger than 5, or larger than 10 for funerals, this despite the fact that Christianity, Judaism, and Islam all had holy days in the month of April.  Why? For a variety of reasons.  Christians believe that God has ordained civil governments for the preservation of order, and that obedience of such authorities is mandated in Holy Scripture. (Romans 13:1-6). Also, the more we learn about COVID-19, the more most people are convinced that it is the safe and right thing to do.  In fact it may also be the loving thing to do – to be protective not only of ourselves, but of others too.  Since it is possible to have the corona virus and not even know it or have symptoms, and yet still able to spread the virus, I am quite willing to do what it takes, including staying home from church, to prevent infecting someone else. (I’m not particularly eager to catch it myself).

But as in most things religious, not everyone agrees.  Churches have conducted “drive in services” – at first illegally, and lately with permission from the Premier – and the media of course was right there to tell us all about it.

Some of the dissenters have suggested that they must defy the government orders because they answer to a higher power, and others have suggested that church is an “essential service”.

But is it really?  You can look at that in two ways, and from two different perspectives.  Some would argue that corporate worship – in person – is essential to carrying out the Christian faith.  In other words, if we can’t gather in groups in person, we are not able to worship God, and unable to experience the teaching, and the encouragement from other believers that is essential to our faith.

Perhaps a look into the history of Christianity is helpful here.  The church has not always met publicly, nor in large groups.  One example of this is the persecution that arose in the very early days of Christianity.  In those early days Christians had no church buildings as we know them. The churches met in private homes, or in public places for larger gatherings.  But when that became too dangerous because of the arrest and persecution of Christians, the church literally went underground.  They met in subterranean burial places called “catacombs”. Many of these still exist today, and visitors can see the religious graffiti and inscriptions there.  Persecution under various regimes throughout the ages has often caused the church to meet in secret.  While one could argue, “at least they were able to meet”, these meetings can hardly be compared to what we would call church services today.  They met in the only way possible for them, since the technology that we now have did not exist. It is interesting to note that all over the world today, Christian churches are “making do” despite their buildings being closed. The survival of the church does not depend on whether the buildings are open or closed.  Is this situation ideal?  Of course not.  Would we like to be back where we were?  Certainly.  But those are not sufficient reasons for civil disobedience in my mind.  Neither do the current emergency measures violate any “charter rights” in my opinion.

Is church essential?  Another way of looking at this involves not the needs of the church, but the needs of society.  Jesus said that His followers are “the light of the world” and the “salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:12-13).  In other words, the church is essential for the well-being of society, and its message of hope and salvation is indispensable. Anyone who has a knowledge of history will know that our world, with some of its educational and health-care institutions would be a very different place were it not for the church.  Or to put it another way, it is essential that the church engages with society again, and that is why we do hope and pray for the day when our churches will re-open.

What is not widely reported in the media is the fact that some 401 pastors and churches in Ontario have written to the Premier of Ontario,  respectfully asking for permission to gradually re-open churches in early June. The letter contains a very safe and responsible plan that will involve some careful protocols and guidelines that we will need to observe.   The Premier has not yet responded to the letter, but I expect there will be some sort of announcement soon.  Until then, we will keep on being the church the best way that we can.  Church is not cancelled.