20 29, March, 2020 C omment catholicweekly.com.au tions trying to slow the rate of infections. In some places this has included total lockdown, where people cannot leave their homes except in cases of absolute necessity. In some countries, particu- larly in South-east Asia, these measures have been singular- ly successful because people have obeyed them faithful- ly, given their traditional re- spect for those in authority. In other places fewer restric- tions have been made or the Even no Mass is a sacrifice we can offer to God W e are now living through restric- tions on many activities that the world has not seen since wartime or since the so-called Spanish flu ravaged the world in 1918-19. That flu, by the way, had truly devastating effects. Of the 1.5 billion people in the world at the time one third, or 500 million, contracted the illness and between 20 and 50 million died from it, more than the estimated 17 million who died in the First World War, which ended that year. The experience of different countries and cities in dealing with the Spanish flu showed clearly that where more re- strictions were placed on peo- ple’s movements, the number of those affected was lower. The present coronavi- rus and the associated ill- ness known as Covid-19 first appeared in China towards the end of 2019 but quickly spread throughout the world, acquiring the designation of a pandemic. Authorities ev- erywhere have placed restric- people have ignored them in greater numbers, leading to a higher rate of infection. In Australia the authori- ties have seen what has hap- pened overseas and they have put significant restrictions on people’s movements and activities in an effort to keep the rate of infection down. They wanted to be ahead of the virus, not waiting until it had taken hold and then act- ing when it was too late. Even then, the number of new cas- es has continued to rise. In the eyes of some, these restrictions have seemed ex- cessive, among them clos- ing churches and forbid- ding Masses and other acts of worship, drastically lim- iting the number of people at weddings and funerals, closing gyms, fitness centres and beaches as well as pubs, restaurants and cinemas, en- forcing social distancing, etc. If it were not for the rising toll of infections and deaths in other countries, some of these measures could in- deed appear extreme, given that the numbers in Australia to date have been relatively small. But if we want to avoid experiencing the high rates we see elsewhere, we should be diligent in fulfilling what- ever the authorities say. If this costs us, as it already has in many ways, sometimes severely, we should accept it as a necessary sacrifice to save the health and lives of others, and possibly our own. In this time of Lent we can unite our sacrifice with that of Christ on the cross. He suf- fered for us and we can offer our suffering in union with him for others. If we cannot attend Mass or receive Communion, that too is a sacrifice we can of- fer to God, in union with the many people around the world who over the centuries and at the present time, can- not attend Mass.
[email protected] What do we build after this? A 14- dot point spiritual ‘reading’ of the current crisis (allegedly from Bill Gates) has been circulating on the net. A search brings up denials of the Gates author- ship and points to its origin in a UK newspaper. The Gates Foundation website car- ries no mention of the letter nor any obvious disclaimer about it. Yet whoever the author is, then, the Open Letter is still worth thinking about. It ends by suggesting that the pan- demic is less a ‘great disaster’ than a ‘great corrector.’ Here in Australia, journalist Chris Uhlmann, in giving details of the national lockdown as a turning point in history, con- cludes “Life has changed bib- lically today.” The 14 points are crisp and clean. A ‘reality check’ or, even, a ‘wake-up call’? There is no mention of God. Uhlmann’ primary al- lusion is to common usage: when natural disasters and other catastrophes are so im- mense that they are described as having ‘biblical propor- tions.’ Was he (deftly) inti- mating something more? In An Open Letter attributed - possibly - to Bill Gates raises interest- ing issues about society after the coronavirus. PHOTO: KUHLMANN/MSC/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, CC BY 3.0 DE Medical staff prepare to deal with the Spanish Flu in Sydney. PHOTO: STATE GOVERNMENT ARCHIVES To change our world in the wake of the coronavirus, some biblical wisdomwould seem essential reading the 14 point ‘check list’, a cluster of words stand out: ‘equal’; ‘connected’; ‘op- pression’; ‘material needs’; ‘families;’; health (self-care); ‘work’ and ‘our true work’; ‘keep egos in check’; ‘choices’ matter (for us or just for me); ‘new beginning’; ‘earth’ (‘we are sick because our home is sick’); life involves cycles (don’t panic; learn from the past). Looking ahead, Andrew Hamilton offered a similar perspective in Eureka Street : “When reflecting on the so- ciety that we wish to build after coronavirus, we need to go be- yond rebuilding the priorities and the ways of working that were there before.They were clearly inadequate.The chal- lenge will be to resist the pres- sure to return to business as usual, and to incorporate into our thinking about the econo- my and our shaping of society what we have learned of the importance of cooperation, communication, trust and gen- erosity— in a word, love.” Is there, perhaps, anoth- er angle to all this? The Open Letter’s language (and con- tent) could be viewed as un- obtrusively theological, sug- gesting resonances with the Prophets and the books of Wisdom. The concerns raised seem to align with those of the Prophets: justice and in- justice; being ‘too big for our boots’ (hubris); money and possessions at the cost of those who are vulnerable, dispossessed and suffering; getting priorities right; Sab- bath as about the family and God’s value system; the earth needs our respect; our choic- es shape ourselves and our world and, now, how this cri- sis must be handled for the common good. Importantly, ‘common good’ seems to be the unify- ing thread. We are created for relationships with God, others and the earth: for a ‘give-way’ not a ‘take-away’ world. In addition, we find echoes of the 14 points in the Wis- dom tradition with its cycles of life: times for giving birth, dying, for searching and los- ing, for loving and hating, for keeping and throwing away. For all of us, especially our leaders, the search is for wis- dom ‘which is beyond the price of pearls’ (Prov. 3: 15). Confronted by nature’s awesome might, we recall that “fear of the Lord is the begin- ning of wisdom.” As Hamilton asks, is the coronavirus ‘event’ forcing us our society (but also the Church) to stop, look, listen and assess everything? Perhaps, a call to glob- al conversion in the broadest sense of that word – the ‘turn around’ change of heart cap- tured in the Greek word meta- noia? Further, with Job, we wres- tle with ‘why bad things hap- pen to good people.’ How can an all-powerful and all-loving God allow evil, suffering and pain to happen? Job realises that his God doesn’t punish us through plagues and famine. It is hu- man dignity’s task, through scientific expertise, political leadership and global collab- oration, to confront such a crisis. Still, at times, with Job, can we only stand silent, yet trust- ing, before the mystery of a loving God and the reality of evil and suffering, for Chris- tians with our gaze on the cru- cified Jesus? The Open Letter and these thoughts in response are in good company. A recent Fri- day homily of Pope Francis called for society to ‘get back on track.’ In a prayer address- ing the Lord directly he said: “It is not the time of your judgment, but of our judg- ment: a time to choose what matters and what passes away, a time to separate what is necessary fromwhat is not. It is a time to get our lives back on track with regard to you, Lord, and to others.” But, for so many, whose horizon may be spiritual but not religious, where to look? I suspect all people, both those with faith and without, continue to struggle with the same question. So, some final thoughts. Since public gatherings for the Eucharist have been sus- pended, one theologian in Europe has suggested this: such a (needed) move does not mean the Eucharist is not being celebrated. “This is my body, given for you” contin- ues to take ‘flesh’ in the nurs- es, doctors, ambulance teams, health workers who, every day, put their lives on the line and, let’s not forget, in the vic- tims themselves. Again, Matthew’s Gospel reminds us that ‘insofar as you did it to one of the least of these brothers (and sisters) of mine, you did it to me’ (Mt. 25: 39). And a final word of reassur- ance fromThomas Aquinas: “All truth and goodness, what- ever its source, is from the Holy Spirit.’” In this ‘great disaster’, where is the presence and ac- tion of a hidden God? Thomas Ryan sm is a Marist priest in Sydney. Fr Tom Ryan SM Father Flader Columnist Dear Father, I try to be faithful to the restrictions the authorities have placed on us to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but I knowpeoplewho say these precautions are too extreme and they ignore them. What shouldwe be doing? In this time of Lent we can unite our sacrifice with that of Christ on the cross. He suffered for us and we can offer our suffering in union with him for others.”