4th Sunday of Lent

Deacon Tom Vert

Preached: March 22, 2020

 “Let us replicate God’s Love faster than any virus!”

Right now, we are all in unknown territory…the coronavirus has been spreading for the past few months causing hundreds of thousands of sicknesses and over 8,000 deaths already with no known anti-viral.

Each day we watch the news, we listen to the radio to see what is happening now both around the world, in our country, in our province and city.   Things change daily with cancellations of events, shutdowns of stores, restaurants, and now church services.  We can’t visit people in nursing homes or hospitals.

We worry as we try to see how this will affect us, our families, friends, and the elderly.  Will it be as bad as China, or Italy where we see so much devastation?

This virus seems to show no end as it spreads through quick replication and stays on surfaces and seems to outwit our scientists, doctors and government leaders.

We know that contact between us is the way it spreads and so now we “hunker down”, self isolate, and quarantine, hoping to slow it down and “flatten the curve” as we wait for the anti-infection scientists to develop a solution to protect us all.

It can be a frightful time, as we realize we have little control over the situation and have no idea when it may end.  How will it affect our health? How will it affect our jobs and our finances?  Can we do anything to gain this control back?  And where is God in all this?  Did He cause this? Why does he allow this to happen?

The readings this weekend can help us with these questions as these questions have been asked for thousands of years as plagues, and diseases and wars have come upon generation after generation of people.

In the gospel we hear a similar question from Jesus’ disciples when they ask: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

The disciples have this ancient image that God is waiting to punish us somehow when we sin.  He uses blindness or leprosy or other diseases to “make us learn a lesson” so to speak.

But Christ corrects their viewpoint by teaching them: “neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.  We have to do the works of the one who sent me…”

In other words, God is not the God who is sitting waiting to punish us, but instead, he tells us that bad things have always happened over the millennia, but each time they do, God shows a way to shine through the life of his followers.

We are told by St. Paul in the 2^nd reading from Ephesians to “live as children of the light, for light produces every goodness…”

In the psalm today, the most famous of all psalms, psalm 23, we have the comfort of God “even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side, with your rod and your staff that give me courage”.

These words tell us that we are not alone at this time of uncertainty, that He walks with us side by side each day.

So how are we to respond and act in these times as “children of the light” and ones called “to do the works of the one who sent me…”

It may seem strange, but we can look at how the virus is transmitted, and it can tell us how to overcome it!

The virus transmits when people cough or sneeze as they spray droplets 3-6 feet away onto people or surfaces.  The droplets survive for 24-48 hours and if touched and then we touch our face or any open spot, it moves quickly into our body and then starts the process of replicating and we show symptoms 5-7 days later.

If a person who is sick (even before they know they are), is in the community, that they can spread it on average to 3 to 4 other people.

So, with no cure right now, the only way to slow down this spread is to ensure that people do not interact with anyone else.  This is so powerful, since it is exponential in growth rate, that even if a person only gives it to 1 or 2 peoples instead of 3 to 4, the overall infection rate will drop by 90%!!!

Well how do we use this information as Christians to help the situation and do the works of God who walks with us?

If the virus slows down by stopping replication, how do we speed up God’s love by increasing the fruits of the Holy Spirit so that its impact may be lowered?

Here are ten ways that we can all help that are practical and spiritual:

1. We care for “our neighbour” by following the guidelines of the experts for social distancing of more than 6 feet, to work from home and self-isolate as much as possible in order to “flatten the curve”, and to preserve our precious medical resources
2. We wash our hands as often as possible with soap and water! This was an ancient Jewish law of purification that we can now enhance and use as a way to ensure that we are blocking transmission and again loving others as God loves us.
3. We buy what we need for our families, and no more! God’s resources of food, soap, sanitizer (and even yes toilet paper) are there for all of us and we are blessed in Canada to have so much!  So, let us ensure every citizen has the same access by calming any tendency to hoard for ourselves.
4. Let us be people of patience, spending the time at home to enjoy the little things in life, including a shared meal or a time to chat, laugh or play a game together.
5. Let us build bridges of love by forgiving past transgressions and focusing on strengthening relationships with a phone call, an email, or a social media post.
6. If we are able, and following all the rules above, can we help a person who cannot get out by buying groceries for them and dropping them off, especially helping the elderly?
7. Can we spend some time getting closer to God through a daily prayer, or reading or time of meditation, and asking Him to show us, with our gifts, what we may do?
8. Can we reach out with daily phone calls of encouragement, of positive thoughts and focus on the little pleasures in life to offset the fear and anxiety of the news of the day?
9. If we are able, can we be people of generosity helping people who may have been laid off or are self-isolating who are having a tough time paying bills and making ends meet to share what we can to “bridge the gap” until times improve?
10. Can we support the people on the “front lines” with our prayers; whether they are medical staff, or those who still provide us groceries, the pharmacists and the first responders who have to deal with people who are more scared and anxious than ever.

If the virus replicates at a rate of 3 or 4, can we replicate God’s love by a factor of 10 in order to swamp the world with love and joy, kindness and goodness, so that the world will know God still walks with us in this toughest of times, through His children here on earth.

Truly, let us all use our energy and “Let us replicate God’s Love faster than any virus!”