Over the weekend, I noticed more and more people are getting sick. At my local Half Price Bookstore, the cashier was constantly blowing her nose, making me wonder why she was there, and why they were having her work on the cashier. While I thought about buying a book, I decided not to buy anything that day. I did not want to expose myself to the risk and get needlessly sick. Then, the next day, when I went to church, I heard many people coughing, some people sneezing and blowing their noses. Some were children, coughing right into the air, not covering their mouth. Yes, it is that time of year when people get sick, which is why the fact people were sick did not surprise me. What I didn’t understand, what I still don’t understand, is why so many people in church were obviously indifferent to the welfare of others, and many of them were not only obviously sick, it did not seem as if they were suffering from a mild illness. No, I do not know what they had, which is, perhaps, a part of the point, as I could think of many potential illnesses which they might have had, some which could be quite dangerous and deadly to others. But that is why I was quite concerned about what I was experiencing. I could imagine the immune compromised in the church ending up getting deathly ill. I was quite upset with the sick people in church, people who claim to be pro-life, while I was not as upset with the cashier, because I understood she likely had to go to work (and people did not have the same kind of obligation to shop in the store as Christians have going to church).
Christians claim to be pro-life. So many of them speak about the dignity of life. But, time and time again, I see far too many of them acting in ways which show they are not considerate about the life of others. I am flabbergasted and appalled at how little they are willing to do to for the sake of others. They will call themselves pro-life, they will speak about being pro-life, and make a show of being pro-life in the public, especially during elections, but their actions, the way they live their life, is far from the principles which should lie behind being pro-life. They can and will virtue signal, often in and through their votes for politicians who indicate they stand against abortion, but when they are personally challenged to care about the welfare of others, they come up with all kinds of excuses as to why they should not be expected to do anything. The pro-life movement has become something other than about the dignity of life, but rather, a way for people to excuse their responsibility for the life of others. This is why so many Christians limit their pro-life advocacy to politics, and politically, with the fate of embryos and euthanasia, because neither concern place any expectations on them and how they should personally life.
It is easy to look good while doing little to nothing to really help those in need. And, sadly, this seems to be a common problem in Christian circles: they speak about the dignity of life, but they don’t want to be burdened with the responsibility that comes out of taking the dignity of life seriously. When they are shown those who are in need, such as migrants, refugees, the homeless or impoverished, they show their true colors. Far from helping them, far from promoting them and their needs, they end up supporting laws and politicians who will make things worse for them. How many Christians, contrary to the welcome Scripture tells them they should have with foreigners, want to build walls to keep them out of their country, and are willing to support the use of military force to expel them from their country? How many of them care that such measures will needlessly harm and kill those who need the most help? How many Christians want to undermine the social safety net, so that those are impoverished, either because they have not been able to be hired, or because they work long and hard in a job which does not offer a living wage, will find themselves homeless, or without the health care they need to live? How many Christians, when confronted with the way such policies will harm whole families, including children, end up shrugging their shoulders and say it is the fault of the poor themselves, and so something the poor, not society, should fix?
To me, this indifference to life is often manifested in the way many Christians treat each other, such as when they come together to worship. When I was at church, listening to all those sneezes and coughs which were going on, I couldn’t but think this represented the indifference many, if not most, Christians now have for those around them. They are only care about what they want to do. If they want to go to church, they should be able to go to church, even if they are sick, even if it means they will make others sick by doing so. They think if they can survive, anyone can survive, which is not always the case; many who go to church are immune compromised, or are around those who are, and for those who are immune compromised, any sickness can become a death warrant for them. Christians should not need to be told that if they are sick, they should stay home, but sadly, such common sense seems to be lacking in the Christian community. Because of this, churches need to make it clear, whatever obligation they have, is dispensed with, if they are sick (or if they are the parents of sick children they have to look after), and they should not come to church until they are fully recovered from their sickness.
This is a personal concern for me. I have been aware of the problem ever since my father was in the hospital, dying of leukemia. One of the best times to visit him would be after church, but I often decided not to go if, when I was in church, I saw many sick people around me. Despite how sanitary I tried to be, I was not sure that I would be sanitary enough, and that I would then end up becoming a carrier of germs which could and would do him in. It was my experience with my father which allowed me to understand the threat around COVID19, and it was during COVID19 I saw the extreme kind of selfishness many Christians had as they did not care about spreading covid to others (which is why so many of them not only protested the lockdowns, they ignored the law and met together, making the pandemic worse). When they could have shown love and concern for their neighbor, showing that they care about life, they did the exact opposite, and many took note, thinking this proves Christians do not live by the principles which they promote and demand others to follow).
What I saw while my father was dying of leukemia, what I saw during the COVID pandemic, came back to me as I was in church, hearing so many people, especially children, coughing in the sanctuary. These were not mild coughs. They were coughing loudly, throughout the whole service. I could not help but think and wonder why no one, like a priest, or an usher, said anything to them, or at the end of service? Why do we rarely get reminders that if people are sick, they not only can, but should stay at home? It seems, truly, Christians have not learned from COVID19. It seems the churches have not learned, either. They seem to care more about having a large crowd in the sanctuary than being concerned about the well-being of those who are these. It is a disgrace. Such indifference to life speaks loud and clear. And, by the end of the service, I could not but wonder, who is going to get sick, and perhaps deathly ill, because of this? I hope no one, but I fear that will not be the case.
* This Is Part XXX In The Personal Reflections And Speculations Series
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