By Catherine Claret Harry
Bengaluru, April 20, 2020: This is something that I felt burdened to write amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
As the battle against the virus and the global public health crises worsens day after day, we need to be aware and cautious of many texts that are misrepresenting God.
I am certain that we all get bombarded with well-meaning and passionate but seriously misguided texts that portray God as a taskmaster or exacting tyrant and even the cause behind this calamity so we can repent and turn to Him.
What I believe is that this is an opportune time for those of us who have been lukewarm and callous to religious faith. This needs to be awakened from our slumber.
It is not coincidental that we battle this during “Lent” or “Easter Season.”
According to me, why not consider this lockdown period as a borrowed time or a time set apart for spiritual rejuvenation, renewal, and refreshment. It is an occasion to grow for the interior life leading us to reconciliation with God and fellow human beings.
It is also a time to mend what is broken and deepen that which is shallow; to be enlightened to see God in the ordinary and be set free to a life of vibrant faith; to come into maturity in our relationship with God.
It is time to fully understand the worth of the things we otherwise participate in without reverence or thought.
It is time to become other-centric and imitate Christ’s altruistic nature in reaching out to those that are looking for Jesus.
It is a wake-up call!
Having said that, we need to ask ourselves: “Does God need a pandemic to threaten His children into loving Him?”
I propose the answer to be a resounding “NO” although I do believe that God will use this to our benefit (Romans 8:28). So many beckon this to the plagues in Egypt, while quoting scriptures like Isaiah 26:20 and the likes – “Go home for a while and lock yourself so that the Lord’s anger might pass.”
And the galore of such texts using sacred scripture to warrant their stand and intention.
God then seems to be a bitter God, angry, frustrated, vengeful, not sovereign, legalistic and bereft of mercy and surely of “Love” (1 John 4:7-8).
He also seems to be a God concerned with the safekeeping of a few while others perish and an endless list of characteristics that distort His true image.
To me, the graven image/idol worship that needs to stop is not so much about idols made by human hands; rather what matters is the trajectory of images carved indelibly in the minds and hearts of people by way of misrepresentation and bad experiences of other believers, which do not paint a true and complete picture of God.
As a worship leader, my great battle among people has been to bring to the fore the heart of God, not by knowledge alone but from a place of experience.
And it is common to many encounters that isolate themselves from God because He is portrayed sadly “in the image of man.”
This false God tends to act and react like any human being, a frustrated one, who would use any means to get His people’s attention like The Grim Reaper.
God is just, but also merciful
To run to God in repentance out of love with compunction and a wild desire, not to offend His tender heart and not out of fear or condemnation, death or anxiety is a crucial stance to take in these trying times.
In line with this, what Saint John Paul II says might be apt, “The absolute and yet sweet and gentle power of the Lord responds to the whole depths of the human person, to his loftiest aspirations of intellect, will, and heart. It does not speak the language of force but expresses itself in charity and truth.”
There is a call for prudence! Keep to reliable sources. Be mindful of what you take in.
Catholics have their Shepherds to look to. So invest time in listening to the Pope and good priests, sound Christian men and women of God who are now accessible on our phones.
Test the spirits and be wise.
And if you are someone who ministers to people hear the words of Pope Francis, who says, “Ministers of the Gospel must be people who can warm the hearts of people, who walk through the night with them, who know how to dialogue and descend themselves into the people’s night, into the darkness without getting lost.”
This is a time of great awakening, of a mighty revival in our land. Let us build our faith and one another.
Finally, I want to climb a virtual Rampart if I may and declare the words of Saint John Paul II whom I dearly love and continually receive from, “Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ. To his saving power open the boundaries of States, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization, and development. Do not be afraid! Christ knows ‘what is in man.He alone knows it.”
I read and meditate on these verses taken from the Letter of St. John. It is beautiful.
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us,” (1 John 4: 18-19).
Stay blessed.
[Catherine Claret Harry is a full-time Catholic Missionary based in Bengaluru, capital of Karnataka state, southern India.]