By Anthony Fernandes

Panaji, April 12, 2020: A niece of Fusco-Jackson on March 20 wrote this on the Facebook: “My mom is one of 11, last Thursday I went to sleep having 10 aunts and uncles! Friday I woke up and found out I only had 9. Just a few minutes ago I found out I only have 8.”

The girl suddenly lost her aunt Rita Fusco-Jackson, her two siblings and their mother who succumbed to the novel Coronavirus named COVID-19. They fell ill after attending a large family gathering in New Jersey, USA.

World in a ‘Lockdown’

COVID-19, which has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation, has taken gigantic proportions and has devastated nations, communities, families and individuals around the world.

As of April 12, it has ravaged over 200 countries affecting more than 1 million people and claimed more than 113,000 lives globally.

India, which has crossed nearly 17,000 confirmed cases and more than 330 deaths, is in lockdown for three weeks since March 25. Goa, my state, has so far recorded 7 confirmed cases with zero deaths.

To contain this menace most nations have declared near-total lockdowns to enforce ‘social distancing’ and thus prevent ‘community transmission’ bringing the economic activity to a grinding halt.

Consequently, the human and economic costs are feared to result in another “Great Depression.” The psychosocial effects of all this are unfathomable.

The worst part of all this is that nobody knows the exact trajectory of this pandemic and how and when it is going to end leading to an added stress, anxiety, fear and gloom.

Church in an unprecedented ‘Lockdown’

Amid this pall of gloom, pain and misery around the world, the Church is faced with an unprecedented situation whereby for the first time in her living memory it has to have its essential religious services without the people.

Beginning with the Pope to the bishops’ Body in India all were sensitive and quick enough to recognize the gravity of the global health emergency and declare a ‘lockdown’ with many parishes live streaming their services to their faithful.

This unprecedented but inevitable ‘lockdown’ has brought back images of the Early Christians ‘locked-down’ in their homes in the face of persecutions during the nascent stage of the Church.

For the conservative and traditional segments of the Church, it has not been easy to accept this decision just as it was arduous for the Church authorities to make this unprecedented decision given the religious sensibilities involved.

The situation was compounded by the fact that we were in the Season of Lent, the hallowed time of the year for Christians. Gauging by the reactions, we can identify two broad types of reactions. To borrow from behavioral sciences we could call them a ‘Fight Reaction’ and a ‘Flight Reaction’.

Let me explain.

In the face of fear and danger, behavioral scientists tell us that humans either get into a ‘Fight’ or ‘Flight’ mode. The reaction of some to the calls for ‘lockdown’ and unprecedented closing of our churches for public services has been a reaction of defiance and display of ‘Apocalyptic Evangelism.’

The derided the looming crisis at its worst as mere ‘Hype’, ‘Panic’ and at its best as the prophesized ‘End Times’ and lampooning the Church authorities as ‘Anti-Christ’ preventing the ‘End Times.’

Pastor Landon Spradlin of Virginia, USA who dismissed the Coronavirus as ‘hysteria’ and ‘an irrational frenzy and fear-mongering’ unfortunately, succumbed to the deadly virus last month after he decided to go to the Mardi Gras in Louisiana ‘to preach’ despite warnings.

People like Spradlin think they have to ‘Fight’ all the ‘Devils’ preventing them from making the ‘moment of Christ’ come. To such ‘Prophets of Doom’ unconcerned about their social responsibility, Christ would say “Do not put the Lord your God to the test” (Mt 4:7) and “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 7: 21).

Others have adopted the ‘Flight’ mode. In the face of the fear of the unknown that is proving to be deadly, they have recoiled and shut themselves inside to increasingly become despondent, lonely, forgotten and depressed.

Such people are finding it difficult to hold on to their ‘faith’ as it was always dependent on the ‘tangible’, the ‘signs and symbols’, the ‘Sacramental’. Devoid of these, they are feeling ‘lost’ and ‘emptied’ of their faith.

When faith becomes a matter of ‘Tradition’, ‘Custom’, ‘Habit’ it is understandable that ‘something profound is lost’ when they are denied their ‘anchors’. However, even to such, Christ would say “This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign” (Lk 11:29).

Not just Orthodoxy, but Orthopraxis

In these extraordinary circumstances when we are in a ‘Lockdown,’ like the First Christians, the Holy Week can be truly unprecedented.

The most Holy Week when we celebrate the foundational feast of our Christian faith preceded by a Triduum can be a great opportunity not just for Orthodoxy (Right Belief), but Orthopraxis (Right Action).

I think it is a blessing in disguise, a test for each one of us to check if the ‘house of our faith’ is built “on sand” or built “on the rock” (cf. Mt 7: 24-27); to check if it is built on mere “Devotions” and “Religiosity” or it is a worship “in the Spirit and truth” (Jn 4:24).

Let us reflect on the central mysteries we will be celebrating this Holy Week from our ‘Lockdown’ in Spirit and Truth. If we would encapsulate the key underlying theme of this Triduum, we would say: Love commandment in all its three aspects of God, self and neighbor.

Maundy Thursday – Love expressed through service (Diakonia)

The liturgy of the day reminds us of the three key acts of Jesus at the Last Supper: Institution of the Eucharist, Institution of the Priesthood and imparting of the Love Commandment. The third aspect of the Love Commandment, i.e. Love of the Neighbor is most pronounced on this day as we are called to express our love through ‘washing of the feet’, through concrete acts of service (Diakonia) towards the needy Neighbor.

As we join the Mystical Body of Christ and mark this day, we remember and feel inspired by all those thousands, particularly the Healthcare givers such as Doctors, Nurses, Paramedics and also all those providing essential utilities and services such as Law enforcement, Media, etc. who in this time of grave crisis are rendering dedicated and compassionate service to humanity and are truly exhibiting ‘Orthopraxis’, ‘Right Action’ as an imperative even of their religious persuasion.

Good Friday – Love leading to surrender (Kenosis)

The Liturgy of the day celebrates, not commemorates, the passion and death of Jesus Christ as a supreme sacrifice on the cross for the redemption of humanity. It reminds us of the ‘surrendering’, ‘emptying’ (Kenosis) of Christ on the Cross to submit to the will of his Father. The ‘emptying of self’ as a love imperative is most pronounced on this day.

As we join the Universal Church in celebrating this day, let us thank God and feel edified by the sacrifices of all those thousands of Healthcare givers and others around the world who have gladly accepted the “Crown (Corona?) of thorns” and the “Cross” and ‘surrendered’ and ‘emptied’ themselves even to the point of death. We also remember the hundreds of priests, religious and others risking their lives these days to minister to the ‘wounded and grieving’ and to those undergoing ‘trauma’ and who have even made the ultimate sacrifice of love embracing death in service of others.

Easter Sunday – Love effecting salvation (Soteria)

The Easter Vigil Liturgy, rich in symbolism, celebrates the foundational truth of our Christian Faith – the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It marks the PASSOVER – triumph of life over death, grace over sin, good over evil and hope over dejection. It reminds us that we are made ‘whole’ once again, ‘healed’ in our relationship with God (Soteria) through the Paschal Dynamic of ‘Death and Rising’ with Christ. Every ‘Breaking of the Bread’ at the Eucharist is a reminder of the ‘Breaking of Christ’ on the Cross to bring about our ‘Communion’ and ‘Wholeness’ with God, Self and Others, in other words, with the ‘Mystical Body of Christ’.

Easter gives us profound certainty and hope that ‘Every Good Friday’ (our present difficult times) has to be necessarily followed by an “Easter Sunday” (Victory/Triumph over the present situation). Our PASSOVER is certain but in God’s own time. May our ‘Lockdown’ in an unprecedented situation forcing us to celebrate our most Holy Week in ‘Spirit and Truth’ and in deep union with the ‘Mystical Body of Christ’ (Universal Church) be an opportunity and challenge to all of us to go beyond ‘Orthodoxy’, not just ‘right beliefs’, to ‘Orthopraxis’, ‘right actions’ manifested through our loving acts of service, surrender and salvation so that we do our part to bringing about the Kingdom of God that is ‘already present’ yet ‘not fully’ amidst us (what we call ‘Inaugurated Eschatology’). Blessed Holy Week to one and all!

[Fr. Anthony Fernandes is the Executive Secretary of the Diocesan Pastoral Secretariat, Goa. He did his Pastoral Studies at Loyola University Chicago, USA.]