Thoughts on COVID-19 Pandemic -- March 19, 2020

Reading some news reports about how long this process is going to take, a couple things occur to me.

1) the logic of social distancing seems to indicate that if we all participate now we will get past this sooner. Within a few weeks I think that will no longer be the case. I’m hearing reports about folks going about Spring Break plans as normal. Charitably I want to assume that they think they can get through “one more thing” but in our current hustle and bustle, there will always be one more thing. We need to call on everyone who will listen to us to cancel plans now. From yesterday forward. For at least the next few weeks. We can reevaluate the other things as time goes by.

2) one of the parts of the Bible we most often ignore is the part about Sabbath. In addition to the weekly Sabbath, there were originally supposed to be Sabbath Years, where the people gave themselves and the land a rest. Obviously in our economy and with population demands we can’t take a year completely off of work, but what if we treated the next few months as a time to slow down, a time to stop glorifying work and productivity for its own sake? (For more on the Sabbath Year, see Leviticus 25)Interestingly, parts of the Bible say that if we do not Sabbath, the land will take it’s Sabbath from us. So look at this time as a forced sabbatical.

3) this is going to be hard. The things that are hardest will surprise us. But we have to learn to care for each other and be cared for in new and challenging ways. Send cards. Call folks. Love one another. See if your neighbor needs a couple groceries when you have to go. Find a quarantine buddy who is going to be your friend you can visit no matter what because you limit your exposure to anyone but each other.

What are some other ideas you have about making this easier?