We cannot deny the seriousness of the situation in the world. Hundreds of thousands are sick, and it is possible that millions more may become infected and die. Daily life is beginning to change as governments attempt to contain the virus by locking down cities and nations. Economies are grinding to a halt. The prospects for the world seem to grow darker by the day.
Enter the enemy. Satan has a plan for all of us. He works amidst the turmoil. A thought is whispered within the recesses of our hearts: “All is lost.” This lie may begin as a whisper, but it grows into a bellowing cry as we see the world careen out of control around us. Satan rejoices as he finds men in the midst of panic. We give ourselves over to the works of the enemy when we revert to our lower nature. Driven by fear, we begin to act like savages, allowing our base instincts to consume us.
We open ourselves up to the enemy when we lose our peace. In a recent interview, Dan Burke, author, speaker, and former president of EWTN, reminded us that the default state for a Christian is to experience peace and joy. He went further to argue that if we are experiencing doubt, despair, or selfishness, then we are not living our lives as we should. If we aren’t experiencing peace and joy in our lives, then something is wrong.
This may seem impossible. How is it that I can experience peace and joy if I’m in a state of physical agony or if the world is quite literally coming to pieces around me? This is where our Catholic faith shines brightest. Unlike other Christians, we do not measure God’s goodness by the positive things that happen in our lives. Yes, we give thanks to God for all that is good, but it would be a mistake to think that everything is going to be easy for us and that things will work out in our favor if we have faith in God.
Instead, we embrace the truth of the cross. We recognize that those whom God loves most are often those whom He asks to suffer in the most agonizing of ways. After all, if God sent His only son into the world to be rejected, tortured, and killed, then why are we surprised when God asks us to suffer as well?
Pride is ultimately what causes us to reject the gift of suffering. We feel entitled to the things in our lives. We see a vision for ourselves and how our lives should unfold, and we come apart when things don’t go our way. God uses suffering to draw us closer into relation with Him. This current pandemic should reveal to us the true frailty and weakness of our earthly state. Despite all of our technology, our advanced medicine, and our wealth, we are powerless against a virus. The reality of our weakness in light of the current crisis illuminates a more pervasive human weakness: that no man can escape death.
When things go wrong at such a high level, on the global stage, we see the very fabric of society begin to rip apart. Why is this? Why is it that despite our modern enlightened way of thinking that our world descends into chaos at a moment such as this? Most of our modern life is built upon a foundation of sand. In our own country, we operate under the flawed notion that we can achieve anything through hard work and resilience. The danger of our American work ethic is that it puts all of the responsibility on us. We cling to pride and make the mistake of thinking that the fate of the world is determined by our own efforts.
Failure to recognize God’s work in the world is what leads us to build houses on sand. We embrace self-reliance, put our heads down, and achieve positive results. This approach works well when the environment that we operate in is well-ordered and relatively under control. However, when we fail despite our best efforts, the bottom falls out and we are washed away by a raging current of despair.
Make no mistake, we are in the midst of a battle. Yes, there is an external conflict. The fight to contain coronavirus is dire and the gravity of the situation should not to be underestimated. Beneath the surface of the conflict in the world lies the battle for souls. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. We have an enemy. And he has one purpose; to destroy us”(1).
Our response to this reality is simple: be vigilant: “But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of man”(2). As we are tested in the coming weeks and months, let us increase our devotions and seek union with God more earnestly.
Finally, let us turn to our Blessed Mother in this time of difficulty. Let us seek her intercession as we pray for an end to this crisis and for the strength to increase our confidence in God:
The Star of Heaven that nourished the Lord
drove away the plague of death which the first
parents of man brought into the world. May
this bright Star now vouchsafe to extinguish
that foul constellation whose battles have
slain the people with the wound of death.
O most pious Star of the Sea, preserve us from
pestilence; hear us, O Lady, for Thy Son honours
Thee by denying Thee nothing. Save us, O Jesus,
for whom Thy Virgin Mother supplicates Thee.
V: Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.
R: That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray
O God of mercy, God of pity, God of benign clemency,
Thou Who hast had compassion on the affliction of Thy
people, and hast said to the angel striking them, “Stop thy
hand;” for the love of this glorious Star, whose breasts
Thou didst sweetly drink as antidote for our crimes,
grant the assistance of Thy grace, that we may be safely freed
from all pestilence, and from unprovided death; and mercifully
save us from the gulf of eternal perdition: through Thee,
Lord Jesus Christ, King of Glory, who livest and reignest,
world without end. Amen.(3)
References:
(1) 1 Peter 5:8
(2) Luke 21:36
(3) Obtained via ourladyofgoodsuccess.com (https://www.ourladyofgoodsuccess.com/blogs/news/prayer-in-times-of-pestilence-the-stella-coeli)
Image:
The Fall of the Damned c. 1620 by Peter Paul Rubens. Obtained via niceartgallery.com (https://www.niceartgallery.com/Peter-Paul-Rubens/The-Fall-of-the-Damned-c-1620.html?from=ads&target=pla-845654445537&key=&device=c&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpLfzBRCRARIsAHuj6qVQgnLZHIIXn8O-L0fkM5sbAfqg7T3gCabUJxOxL6cqI-PcTKvydOAaAvjSEALw_wcB)
No comments:
Post a Comment