Insights Into The Covid-19 Church Era Par VI
We do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our eweaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin.” (Hebrews 4:15)
The year of 2020, the Covid-19 year, will go down in history as the year of economic collapse and social and political unrest, when people cried out to the Church to respond with empathy and understanding. Isolation had devastating effects. Most isolated patients who died from Covid-19, died alone, away from their family. Many Americans lost their jobs when they did nothing to deserve that. Others empathized with minorities, protesting in the streets against mistreatment of minorities by law enforcement. All wanted their voices to be heard by empathetic ears. All want to be understood. In the midst of this turmoil, many looked to the church for empathy.
I was initially proud of Americans and the church for their willingness to obey “Stay-At-Home” edicts and close their doors to protect the elderly and medically venerable from Covid-19. They showed respect for their elders and being “Pro-Life” were practicing what they preached, but a few short months later, they became bored, antsy, and most churches scurried back to their church buildings even though the pandemic was still on the rise in many parts of the United States. It did not take much time to erode their patience. They soon were willing to abandon their short-lived sacrifices for their weekly “Groundhog Day” worship services and the ability to go “out to eat” after church in order to support their local economies in place of protecting the elderly, the poor, and the vulnerable.
George Floyd’s lost life opened the door for massive demonstrations in spite of Covid-19. Their cry was for empathy, wanting to be heard and understood. As the nation gingerly responded empathetically, President Trump’s photo op of holding up a Bible in front of a boarded up church building exposed a deeply divided Church rationally. Black churches sought social justice; White churches supported a “Law and Order” President whose moral standards are beyond unacceptable.
Jesus empathized with mankind. Knowing the weakness of each of his 12 disciples, he still opted to chose, nurture, develop, and release them to become apostles in spite of their faults. Empathizing with them, he invested in them, changed, and developed their lives.
People in this Covid-19 era are looking or a Church for empathy. How will it respond?