stay home

On the day that America entered the War in Iraq, I knelt in church praying this Prayer of the Holy Innocents from the Book of Common Prayer:

      “Receive, we pray, into the arms of your mercy all innocent victims, and by your
      great might frustrate the designs of evil tyrants and establish your rule of justice,
      love and peace.”

Right now this prayer feels relevant again.  Not that all victims of COVID 19 are innocent babes…some are noble, others are not.  But all who are dying in hospitals are dying without family or friend, snatched from loved ones without even seeing the enemy who has seized them.  I have my opinion of who the evil tyrants sowing chaos are;  I will leave you to yours.  But I am praying for justice, love and peace to descend upon us…for healing and grace to descend upon the whole world like a curtain.  Only God can bring about the miracle I seek.  I will not settle for puny prayer.

So here’s another prayer I am praying nightly:

      “Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or weep this night, and give
      your angels charge over those who sleep.  Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the
      weary, bless they dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the joyous; and
      all for your love's sake."

Shield the joyous?  Is ANYONE feeling joyous right now?  Sure.  Everyday my heart swells with thankfulness and joy.  I KNOW how fortunate I am to be safe and sheltered with my loved ones.  But I am so humbled by the suffering that I hear about and see every time I turn on my TV, open the paper, call my friends.  My heart breaks for those who are weary, dying, suffering, afflicted and alone.  I humbly hold my joy and heartbreak together and ask God for his mercy in the midst of the mix.

Stay home!  Save a Life!  Life is beautiful.

In all the sorrow of these days, there are glimmers of hope…ways that we might see this as important transitional time, if we have the will to do so.  From a recent article in the LA Times entitled “How pandemic could reshape civilization” by Joe Mozingo I quote these words of hope and encouragement:

“Americans, by and large, appear to be looking to science to save the day, not to political spin and partisanship…the abrupt disruption of routines that were so long considered by many unalterable—the long daily commute, the business meeting that requires a flight or two, the need to schedule children’s every hour, the go-go-go mentality—opens the possibility of a behavioral reset, for those who can afford it.” 

Mozingo then goes on to say that Marion Bournet the chair of USC’s department of urban planning and spatial analysis “sees opportunities to fight a slower-moving, potentially far more destructive global disaster:  climate change.”  Wouldn’t it be amazing if through this pandemic we could find a way to adjust behavior that could positively affect our environment….adjust in ways that didn’t seem possible before any of this occurred?

As Governor Andrew Cuomo said this week, “we will reopen and rebuild not what was, but better and smarter…thinking about:  better healthcare, better transportation/telecommuting, smarter telemedicine, smarter tech in education… [and be] more cohesive in our spirit of community.”

There are challenges ahead:  deeper political polarization as we see in the protests in certain locations, egged on by irresponsible leaders calling for “Liberation”.  We also see the rise of authoritarian regimes in Hungary.  Many fear that as we opt for greater surveillance, the tools to do contact tracing could cost us precious freedom…that Big Brother will abuse the technology and use it against us.  How can we ever know what the positives and negatives will be? 

This is where faith comes in.  Joe Mozingo sees science as more reliable, more helpful than partisan politics, and Governor Cuomo believes that our government needs to be smarter.   I also think that faith has a huge role to play.  People of faith know that “incredible joy can be independent of their circumstances…Sin and death do not have the final words in our lives… in dark days, the response of God’s people is to sing.  The songs we sing in the middle of the night shape our identity.”  (Marc Choi)

What songs are we singing?  Are you singing songs of denial, detachment, distraction or despair?  Or are you singing songs that are honest… seeing that this world is indeed broken, that we can’t go back to business as usual?  Are you singing of songs of clear-eyed hope?  Because what we need now is hope and wisdom that is based on all the truth available to us, in science AND faith. 

Please, Lord, let all this death, financial loss and emotional trauma serve some greater purpose! 

Love, Liz

Photo of a photo by Genaro Molina, Los Angeles Times.