QUARANTINE LIFE: BACK TO NORMAL?

I’m noticing a chasm forming, in thought and behavior, between those who attended places of worship prior to the pandemic, and those whose livelihoods depended on places of worship being in operation. 

There’s an aggressive lot who are behaving as if there’s a contest under way. 

Everyone is not rushing back to pre-pandemic mode, and those who are itching to pick up March 2020 where it left off, are turning into guilt-trip travel agents.

Those who pivoted, and adopted virtual options in which to teach and fellowship, continued to thrive. Those who didn’t, are looking and sounding increasingly dictatorial and desperate to “get back to normal”. 

Is the manipulation and gaslighting to get people crowding back into buildings, based on a sincere love of God, or a lack of funds? Is it about God’s interest in souls, or self-interest? What about evangelism? Are new souls even being won, or is it all about gathering the regulars these days? 

I’m curious if there’s data citing the number of people who were led to Christianity since 2020. I don’t think parishioners are dissing God or abandoning Jesus. They’re respecting a very real virus that has killed millions. Among those millions were God-fearing church folk.

Is God starving for attention? I doubt it. I imagine that as uncertainty and anxiety rose, habits ceased, and courses corrected, something else changed. Perhaps prayer, study, meditation, praise, worship, and service increased exponentially during this crazy time. People reconnected with their own households, and reordered priorities. God isn’t missing adulation. He’s not restless or bored. Men are. 

As a result of this pandemic, The Church— the body of believers— is being what she should have always been—a help— not a ridiculous, clownish, choreographed side show and shrine to men, but a light in this world. We are seeing true service and volunteerism. Needs are being met. The poor are being seen and graciously assisted. The pandemic leveled the playing field, and the superficiality, exclusivity, and politics of “church” took a back seat to the necessity of genuine ministry, and community service. The work of the church has eclipsed church work.

There’s bullying on social media apps in an attempt to get back to old business; people are trying to shame others, and even go so far as to question their faith. God is neither small, ignorant, nor is he bound by anyone’s religion, rules, or traditions. Is it his business that pandemic bullies want to be about, or their own? Are they missing him or their compensated, highly visible role in the weekly fashion show/extravaganza? All of the performing, pomp, and preening requires people in seats giving feedback. Like a stand-up comic needing to hear laughter, many are missing the noise of adoration. Is that why folks are so insistent that everybody get back in their places as spectators to clap and mingle with others who could be asymptomatic, vaccine-hesitant, or in Covid-19 denial? Is the applause what’s really missed?

The early months of the pandemic were horrific. I haven’t forgotten how many religious leaders died; how many people who brazenly mocked and minimized the pandemic are no longer with us; how many disregarded warnings and sickened their families and friends because they “had to go”, or weren’t going to let anyone tell them what to do; how many deathbed warning speeches were recorded by those who thought Covid-19 was a hoax.

We have clearly learned very little from the AIDS epidemic. We’re repeating the same stuff, and not getting serious until our own are affected. We’re not being forthcoming about our dealings, and adopting conspiracy theories. Then we want to get quiet, be sorry, demand the privacy and grace we didn’t extend to others, lie—or out of embarrassment—call it something else altogether when there’s a death. 

When money is tied to a thing, does wisdom, caution, and consideration for the well-being of others disappear? The last I checked, COVID-19 is still sickening and killing people. The numbers are recorded every day. The trouble has not passed, but, hey bullies, do you by all means. Wherever it is, go. Gather. Take your masks off. Get vaccinated. Don’t get vaccinated. Lick a doorknob. Drink toilet water. Eat a live bat with a side of cicadas. Do you, but leave others alone. This is, of course, America, where some people f*ck around and find out, while others take full advantage of the brain that God gave them, read, study, ask questions, see through rhetoric, know when motives aren’t pure, and lead with caution. Freedom isn’t always free, and choices always have consequences.

Everyone has had ample time to assess, and make decisions that are best for themselves and their loved ones. This isn’t the time to impose. There’s a reason why people love Jesus, but are skeptical about his modern-day representatives who have a tendency to preach, promote, and demand what even he doesn’t require.