Op-ed: Thinking of Others First

This morning I read a Tweet from Rev Dr William Barber, II, a Protestant (Christian Faith) Activist Minister, Visiting Professor at Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York, and a President of the South Carolina Chapter of the NAACP [Source: Wikipedia - Rev Dr William Barber II], Rev. Dr. Barber in his tweet last night said,

“Houses of worship are not essential, but true worship is: ‘When I was hungry, did you feed me? When I was thirsty, did you give me a drink? When I was a stranger, did you invite me in? When I was naked, did you clothe me? When I was sick and in prison, did you visit me?’”

[reference: Matt 25-31-40, Christian Faith; Source: Tweet from @RevDrBarber dated 05/22/20 05:20pm EDT]

I say to Professor Rev Dr Barber, “Amen”.

The church, the mosque, the temple, houses of worship all are important for fellowship, encouragement in our respective faiths, but it is NOT the true essential to our own particular faiths to attend church, mosque, temple, houses of worship, etc.  All religious leaders of each of these faiths would say the true church, mosque, or temple is the people.  YOU AND ME. Our most common denominator with each of our faiths is best summed up be by Pierre Tielhard de Chardin, SJ, a Jesuit Priest, Philosopher and idealist who once said, 

“You are not a human being in search of a spiritual experience. You are a spiritual being immersed in a human experience”.  

The church, temple, mosque, etc. is a simple building. But the faith which we all aspire resides in how we treat each other. Treating others the way we want to be treated. Did you know many many faiths have this “Golden Rule” (Judaeo-Christian reference)?

So if we (the people) are the church, the Mosque, the Temple..., and many faiths have their own version of the Judaeo-Christian “Golden Rule”. How is it that we as men and women of Faith have this “need” to “go to church” during a once in a century pandemic for which there is no effective treatment (FDA approved) nor a vaccine (FDA Approved)?

There are those religious leaders who are taking precautions for every wearing a mask, social distancing, and staggering services so maybe only 25% of the faith members are present at one given time. To those religious leaders I applaud. 

However, I have also heard many faith leaders say “Keeping the church closed of a violation of my rights as a US citizen whose founding was based on religious freedom" (escaping the state enforced Church of England in Britain).

“The phrase "God helps those who help themselves" is a motto that emphasizes the importance of self-initiative and agency. The expression is still famous around the globe and used to inspire people for self-help. The phrase originated in ancient Greece and may originally have been proverbial. It is illustrated by two of Aesop's Fables and a similar sentiment is found in ancient Greek drama. Although it has been commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin, the modern English wording appears earlier in Algernon Sidney's work.

The phrase is often mistaken as a scriptural quote, though it is not stated verbatim in the Bible. Some Christians have criticized the expression as being contrary to the Bible's message of God's grace.[1] A variant of the phrase can also be found in the Quran”

[Source: Wikipedia on quote “God helps those who helps themselves”.

Why do I offer this quote? Because G-d, Allah (which means G-d in Aramaic), imbued each of us with the ability to think, make decisions, and have thoughts - intelligence.

We are in the midst of a pandemic (#COVID19) which occurs maybe once in a century. Using our intelligence and hence the ability of reason:

1. knowing from the Centers of Disease Control (CDC) that up to 40% of those with COVID19 are asymptomatic (show no signs of visible or measurable symptoms) see cdc.gov/coronavirus;
2. knowing that COVID19 is contagious from person to person, especially in large groups; knowing that we are now nationally at 100,000 deaths (3x the number of US troops killed in Vietnam);
3. knowing there is NO FDA approved viable treatment Nor a vaccine; knowing our ONLY DEFENSE against COVID19 is isolation, PPE and SOCIAL Distancing;
4. knowing our respective faiths each has a form of the Christian version we all know as the "Golden Rule" (in the Christian faith Jesus said it is the Second Greatest Commandment [Matthew 22:35–40, Mark 12:28–34, and Luke 10:27a]);
5. knowing WE the people are the church - not a building;

then I ask you what is the rush to “get back to normal “? We are in the midst of a pandemic! 

I can’t speak for G-d, Allah, etc.,as I am not qualified, but using my reason and intelligence and knowing my faith’s (Christian) Second Greatest Commandment, how is rushing back to a building during a pandemic (even if we take precautions), make sense? Our ONLY CURRENT DEFENSE is isolation, social distancing, PPE, and restricting travel to essential only. Our political leaders are not motivated by their faith by opening up almost every US state.  

I say all of this to impart one point - how are we treating others when we congregate in large groups in an enclosed building by going to church during a pandemic? 

“There is an expression - G-d helps those who help themselves’ [see reference above] .What exactly does that mean? I believe it means it is not a time to test your faith or test G-d. In addition to our Faith, which is a gift, we are also given common sense and intelligence to keep us safe. We need to understand by using our reason and intelligence; using our faith and following the "Golden Rule" regardless of our faith; for now it is not a sin to not attend church during a pandemic. The risk is to great - regardless of the precautions we take. I’ll end with a story which has been told several times in several ways.

A man was caught in a flood With rising waters and made it to his roof. He was man of faith and prayed, “G-d please save me. Don’t desert me. I know my faith will save me”. Immediately after the man prayed a man in a rowboat came by and said “hey Buddy, jump in I’ll save you”. But the faithful mans said, “No thanks, my faith and G-d will save me.”

The man prayed again, “G-d please save me. Don’t desert me. I know my faith will save me”. Immediately after his prayer, a motorboat came by and the boat driver said, “hey Buddy, jump in I’ll save you”. But the faithful mans said, “No thanks, my faith and G-d will save me.”

As waters continued to rise, the man prayed again, “G-d please save me. Don’t desert me. I know my faith will save me”. Immediately after his prayer, a helicopter came by, dropped a rope with a sling and the pilot said through the loud speaker on the helicopter, “put your arms through the sling and I’ll lift you to safety”. But the faithful mans said, “No thanks, my faith and G-d will save me.”

Finally the waters rose so high, it swept the man of faith into the water and he drowned. 

Upon death, he found himself immediately in heaven before G-d. G-d asked the man of faith, “What are you doing here my son? I still had work for you?”.

The man of faith said “G-d?.... I don’t understand.... I believe in you...I am a man of faith.... I PRAYED for you to save me. WHERE were you G-d? Why didn’t you save me when I asked?”

G-d replied, “What do you mean my son? I sent to you a man in a row boat, a motor boat, and a helicopter?”.

[source: https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/police-chaplains-listen-your-intuition-now-more-than-wolfe-osfoc ].

No one knows better than Rev Dr Barber the importance of faith and attending church. I get it. I was reared United Methodist, a former Roman Catholic and now serve as a Franciscan Priest in the Old Catholic Church. I get the importance of being present in the house of G-d, Allah, Jehovah, Etc. Ritual and Community are important in most faiths. These have been our sources of strength before COVID19. But we must begin to realize there WILL be a NEW normal to which we must adjust - at least until a viable vaccine is found for COVID19.

I have to wonder when we insist on attending out church, parish, temple, mosque, etc., is right as a US citizen, are we thinking of the elderly couple with underlying health issues who we see at every service? How would you feel if you discovered you have been positive for COVID19 and were asymptomatic (you haven’t been tested yet because testing is not yet widespread) and, gave that couple a hug and inadvertently passed on COVID19 to that elderly couple who subsequently died?

When we insist on attending church physically during a pandemic, are we thinking of others and how we might innocently affect their lives? Or are we thinking of our own insistence of attending at any cost? 

G-d, Allah, Jehovah, our Supreme Being might say to us...

“What are you doing? I imbued you with intelligence and reason? Why are you not using it? I am always with you whether you are isolation, at home, or a first responder or essential worker at work. I will be here for you when the pandemic is over. Think of me often. But think of others as well.”

_______________________

 About the Author

Jeff Wolfe is a Franciscan Priest, Author, Speaker, former Law Enforcement Chaplain, Advance First Responder Chaplain Instructor, Managing Partner for Write Right LLC, Director of the First Responder Chaplain Division for the Spiritual Care Association and Adjunct Professor for the University of Theology and Spirituality (UofTS.org).

Author's Note:

All thoughts and opinions in this article are exclusively my opinions. None of the content above can or should be attributed to any organization I currently serve or have served. Some have asked why I use a "-" in place of the "o" when referring to G-d. It’s a matter of respecting another’s faith. In this case I am respecting my fellow Jewish brothers and sisters whose beliefs and traditions prohibit from writing out the word "G-d" with the "o" instead of the "-". As clergy, we each represent our own faith tradition. But that does not mean my faith tradition should disrespect one of my fellow human being's faith tradition or no faith tradition. Matthew Fox describes the diversity of faiths in the world through the title of his book "One River, Many Wells".

#ThinkAboutIt #COVID19 #Church #Parish #Mosque #Temple #AllFaiths #GoldenRule