Homily

Regarding the current virus threat, as is so often the case, there are two extreme reactions. On the one hand, some people say there’s absolutely nothing to worry about, while on the other hand some people say it’s the end of the world as we know it. Usually the truth is somewhere in between the extreme attitudes.

In former times when there was a plague or epidemic people would crowd the churches and pray to the Lord for relief, begging Christ to save them. Today we see, in a number of places throughout the country, Catholic churches are closed this Sunday because you save people by not allowing them to come together and pray. I find the contrast between these two different viewpoints very interesting.

Now a few of you may be thinking, “In ancient times people didn’t know how disease was spread, so they didn’t mind gathering together.” That’s not 100% true, otherwise lepers would not have to live apart from healthy people. But even so, would we say it was wrong for them to come to the churches and worship because it would have been better if everybody would have just stayed at home and prayed? Would we say that what they needed wasn’t the Divine Liturgy? What they needed was to be isolated from each other to stop infection, because that’s what saves people. See what I mean? Very different viewpoints.

I was just reading a short article that mentioned the deadly epidemics that attacked many of the cities of the Roman empire in the mid-third century. Those who could fled to the countryside to avoid these plagues. But we have the texts from some pagan writers who were amazed that there were people called Christians who stayed to take care of the sick at the risk of their own lives. Some pagans were so impressed by these heroic actions that they converted.

Here’s the part where I say, “Let me be very clear about this.” As I have written in emails, if you’re sick, stay home. That’s always been true. If you think you might be at risk of serious illness or death, or if you are just afraid of the risk, okay, stay home. But even so I have some serious doubts about telling everyone else that you can’t worship on the Lord’s Day, because the outcome will be bad for people. That seems to me to be a 100% secular solution to a human problem, and human problems are never 100% secular.

I think of the early Christians during the time of persecution. They weren’t throwing themselves into the arenas to be lunch for lions. But at the same time, they didn’t give up coming together secretly to celebrate the Eucharist, even though there was the constant threat of arrest and death. When they joined together in worship, they put the whole group in danger of being arrested.

And I think of the Ukrainian Catholic priests and bishops along with the men and women who gathered together in secret to serve the Holy Liturgy during Soviet times. They were not always risking immediate death, but life in Soviet prisons was not far from a death sentence many times. Even if they were not arrested their future lives could have been made very, very hard if they were discovered, and not only their future lives but the future lives of their children could also have been deeply affected by their actions. They could have just stayed home and prayed. And yet many of them did gather to worship and receive the Body and Blood of Christ, despite the threats. Why did they put themselves at such risk?

The current health threat is not just a physical, material problem, just as we are not simply physical and material beings. It’s a very bad idea for us to leave the Lord out of our thoughts and actions at this time. Just because the news media doesn’t suggest that prayer is an effective remedy against coronavirus does not make it so. Just because much or most of society thinks that preserving their own lives is the highest of all values doesn’t make it so. Like the parable of the man with the great harvest who built extra barns for his prosperous future years, what if the Lord comes to take us tonight and says “You fool! This very night your life is required of you. To whom will all these rolls of toilet paper go?”

There can indeed be one good thing to come out of this epidemic, and that is it helps us to truly look at what we value in our lives, or better yet, Who we truly value in our lives. Is our trust first and foremost in Christ, or do we believe more in the power of hand sanitizer? Which we have! It’s not a matter of either one or the other. No matter what it is that might take us out of this life, because there are so many, many ways we can be taken, are we prepared to meet the Lord even today? And even if we take every precaution for the health of our bodies, what precautions are we taking for the health of our souls?

So here we are today, right now. Let us turn our attention to the health of our lives in Christ, even as we pray for the health of our bodies, and those of our families and fellow parishioners. Let us receive the Body and Blood of Christ, which is medicine for body and soul.

Christ has conquered the power of sin and death, but it’s up to us to put ourselves under His victory so that we may live in Him. Let’s be sure we are doing that here today!