Pope Francis has just now (30^th May) on the eve of Pentecost, when Christians celebrate the Holy Spirit of God coming to the world in a manner never seen before, live streamed the rosary to holy shrines dedicated to Mary, the mother of Jesus throughout the world. The five glorious mysteries were recited by people intimately connected, as are we all, to the current covid 19 pandemic. Prayers were said that Mary ask her Son for an end to the suffering and pain all are experiencing at this time, just as she asked Jesus at Cana in Galilee, at a wedding, to help out when the wine ran out. As a result many litres of water became the best wine ever.  

As the Church prays for the ending of the Pandemic we focus on the future. The Pope prayed that money spent on weapons of war may instead be spent to prevent this ever happening again. The phrase uttered about the first world war that this was a war to end all wars (H G Wells), can be re applied – that this is a pandemic to end all pandemics. But with all such slogans good intentions must translate into action. We have seen many wars since 1918. May we not see other worldwide battles with pathogens.   

There has been an out pouring of new wine already in the solidarity shown within and between nations, esteem for those on the front line and most people pulling together and making great sacrifices so that we can, as a society and a world win this war against an unseen enemy which threatens us all, and start building a just and fair world. A world where the natural habitat of humanity, our creatures and ecosystems are respected and not exploited.

This means a change of heart. A new vision. A metanoia and re alignment with the Creator’s loving plan.

The pandemic has raised questions about the World Health Organisation. This UN agency established in 1948 with what has been described as an advisory role, might become even more effective in promoting the health of the world’s populations if given a more proactive brief, a broader remit and greater authority. This is a time for better funding for the agency, not less.

There are many around the world exploring new vaccines. To what extent should the WHO take initiatives here?

Historians will seek to answer questions about the beginnings of this unexpected pandemic. Could more have been done to slow down its spread throughout the world and how did it emerge? These questions are important because it would be wise to be prepared…

This pandemic has not happened in a vacuum. Animal trade and encroachment into animal habitats have come into focus. Farming large numbers of animals and poultry close together and the destruction of forests to accommodate more of the same is a cause of climate change and this is by far the greatest threat to the health of humanity the world has ever known. Should the WHO look at this?

The pandemic could be said to tap into the more fundamental issue of how we look after creation.

If we step outside the Creators plan for this wonderful world, bequeathed to humanity in love, then we bring calamity upon ourselves. A simple example would be the need we have for the force of gravity. If we ignore the pull of gravity and jump off a sky scraper we die.

The bible tells us how to be happy and take care of ourselves body mind and spirit. This is fine tuned and spelled out in the moral and social teaching of the Church. Why not make a list of some of this moral and social teaching and alongside side each entry write what happens when it is ignored – to us and to the world.

Try Genesis 1. 26 – 31 “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was good.” (v31)

Last Thursday 14^th May Pope Frances and other world religious leaders called for a day of prayer and fasting to save humanity from the pandemic, to enlighten scientists and heal the sick.

This is another major step forward for world faiths in working together and something very positive coming from this terrible situation facing the world. It is so important that people of faith stand together.  

Yet what does this day of prayer mean? Are we praying for divine intervention to end the pandemic?

When we pray with faith it is to a God who loves humanity. To God who knows everything, sees our plight and hears our prayer. The God who created the world, the galaxies and who is author of all that is.

I know of someone who did not allow her family to call an ambulance when she caught covid 19 saying that God would heal her. Two days later she couldn’t breathe and died even though her family had said God also heals through the medical services.

God is in the courage and perseverance of doctors and nurses who risk their lives every day to treat those with covid 19. Some have died. God is in the science that will find a vaccine and in the politicians and scientists who are trying to find a way forward.

God works providentially through circumstances and situations. The coincidence which is really a God incidence.

Groups such as Cor et Lumen Christi, a catholic charismatic group in their miracle rallies (see link) would advise those who believe they have been healed to get it checked out with the doctor before coming off medication.

So prayer is putting everything in God’s hands. We pray as though everything depends upon God and act as though everything depends upon us. When we pray we may have a sense of what we can and do ourselves. God has given us free will. We can be courageous, we can use our gifts and talents for others, we can use science. Even those without a religious faith can pray and rely upon a higher power to do what they can’t manage in their own strength. Witness the 12 steps of Alcoholic Anonymous – “come to believe in a power greater than ourselves…” (Step 2)

Yes we ask for God’s help to keep us safe as individuals but we have to play our part. We may ask God to keep us from covid 19 but if we travel on crowded public transport without gloves or mask to a place of work where we can’t self distance we not doing this.

In the meantime as I said in my last post, covid 19 is revealing flawed social care services and a lack of justice. As a community we must ensure it is safe to travel for all and a duty of care is exercised in all work places of work. Those more vulnerable whether due to the economic necessity of going to work or those in care homes must get the help they need to stay safe. We’re all in this together as the saying goes.

We need to get behind the steering wheel and find better ways of living recognising our interdependence and interconnectedness.  May almighty God empower us, lead us, inspire us and bring healing to those suffering from this pandemic directly and indirectly and may we, with God’s help change things for the better when this is all over.

www.coretlumenchristi.org

Covid 19 is holding up a mirror to us all and in so many ways. Care homes in the UK have been at breaking point with 100,000 staff vacancies and evidence of serious underfunding. Yet NHS directives on 19^th March and 2^nd April told care homes to expect patients no longer benefitting from hospital care. Now a third of all coronavirus deaths in England and Wales are happening in care homes. Official statistics show 4,343 deaths from the virus in the two weeks to 24^th April. This raises many questions. 84% of care home beds in England are privately owned and many staff are migrant workers from poorer countries on low pay it would seem. Hopefully, covid 19 has exposed the crises in our care homes for many who may not have been aware.

On the BBC news in the last few days we saw how casual workers in New York are joining the ranks of the homeless and sleeping on subway trains. In the UK there is a homeless crisis also. This raises questions about the social care available in the rich America and elswhere. Again covid 19 is trumpeting social inequality and injustice.

And yet again, according to the Jesuit Refugee Service covid 19 brings into sharp relief a broken Asylum system. The Home Office is struggling to function in the pandemic. Doctors and Nurses seeking asylum are banned from working in spite of the obvious need for all hands on deck. Why not grant them temporary grant of Leave to Remain they say? 

The challenges are there for all to see. Surely we must take stock and deal with the underlying issues of lack of social care for the most vulnerable. It is upon this that a country – any country, can be judged.

Things can’t go back how they were before – Carpe diem.    

One of the recent posts which have been forwarded to me shows a cute little girl of about two with hands joined, eyes closed and head bowed in prayer. The caption reads “Dear God. Could we please uninstall 2020 and re – install it?? It has a virus.!!

The pandemic Covid – 19, while in itself a global disaster on an unprecedented scale, has brought out the best in people and nations throughout the world.  So called lockdown in many countries with whole populations isolating at home has come about due to a respect for life, especially the old and most vulnerable who are more likely to perish if they contract the coronavirus. To save life at any cost is the driving force for expenditure on the NHS in the UK and health systems of other countries at this time. As we know many doctors and nurses and front line workers have paid the ultimate price as I pointed out in my last post.

Each and every person is precious and unique and has an irreplaceable part to play in making the world a better place for all. Each life is worth saving. Let’s think about how wonderful we are.

Every human being begins to exist through the meeting of an ovum and a sperm. Inside the fertilised ovum at the moment of conception there are already 23 chromosomes from each parent. Each chromosome contains genes. So inside something just a hundredth the size of a pinhead, are 22,000 genes. Every gene is a factory. So there are 22,000 factories. Each has its own job to do; each has its own part to play in the formation of another human being.

At the moment of my conception ‘I’ began to exist. From that moment I began to develop. My heart was already formed and working three weeks later, before my mother knew she was pregnant.

‘It was you who created my inmost self,

and put me together in my mother’s womb;

for all these mysteries I thank you:

for the wonder of myself, for the wonder of your works.

Psalm 139. 13 – 14

April this year marks the passing of the Abortion Act in 1968. According to the Society for Unborn Children (SPUC) website “the most recent figure for the total number of abortions throughout the UK since 1967/68 is approximately 9.5 million. Add to that, at the very least, 3 million embryos destroyed through IVF procedures over the past three decades, it makes twelve and a half million babies destroyed in total.”

In a BBC report a few weeks ago it was estimated the worst case scenario for the coronavirus could be 250, 000. It was headlined, “Coronavirus: UK changes course amid death toll fears.”

Yet the figure for abortion and discarded embryos in 2018 alone, the latest figure, is 380,000 – a much higher death toll. (SPUC)

So we have on the one hand an immense and commendable effort to save lives in this pandemic and on the other hand and an unrelenting death toll of unborn babies.

Slogans such as “a woman’s right to choose,” and “every child a wanted child,” point to an ideology predicated on the assertion that mothers have the right to take the life of their unborn child.

Women who felt they had no way out of an unwanted pregnancy other than abortion are suffering in untold ways because of their so called “choice.” The aftermath women stumble into following abortion is unimaginable. Woman too are the victims of abortion.

Things must not continue as before when this pandemic is over. A new respect for human rights. A new search for peace in the world. Addressing the refugee crisis and a serious quest to end world hunger and climate change – and –  new respect for life from the moment of conception to death throughout the world.

Ending the pandemic of abortion.

For those affected by this post with regard to abortion please contact www.archtrust.org.uk