Faith – that quest for significance and security, both in the here and now and the hereafter, in transcendence – is intrinsic to being human. Even the most avowed atheists will acknowledge that deep within their sense of being, there is a hunger and thirst for relationship with something beyond them. The most obvious is the human longing for love because there is something transcendent about love. The human quest for meaning from transcendence, in the face of a monstrous and inexplicable natural disaster, catastrophe or plague, is therefore a natural instinct. It is the way to cope or deal with the panic, fear and uncertainty created by the catastrophe; faith is an essential part of human arsenal for fight or flight.
The COVID-19 is such a plague; it is testing the limits of faith or lack of it. Christians are not an exception.
In my reading of the various faith responses to the pandemic among those who profess to be evangelical, saved, born again or Pentecostal, there are two dominant impulses: first, retreating into apocalyptic end times devotion and rhetoric, referencing end-time prophetic writings and invoking modern day doomsday prophets; and second, the plea to unwavering trust in God, who promised deliverance to his own, who turn to him.
The two most common passages that have been pointed to for encouragement are 2 Chronicles 7:14 and Psalm 91:
“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land…” (2 Chronicles 7:14)
And Psalm 91, in particular: ”
5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.”
As I have read and listened to how these passages are applied, I have wondered, as to whether referencing them isn’t more a reflection of our fear and panic, rather than our faith in God. I have gone to the Scriptures, and read the historical context of both passages in order to understand how they apply to us today, faced with the COVID-19 plague.
In the first passage, the prerequisite for the healing of the land is “humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways”, often interpreted to mean calling for prayer vigils and assemblies and ‘crying to God in repentance’. I fear this is a cop out from attending to the hard and arduous work of turning from our wicked ways, something that is not achieved through prayer assemblies. In the second passage, the idea is that in the time of plagues, God has a preferential treatment for those who trust in him. As, is evident, just like “He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:45), so it is with COVID-19; it is killing both the righteous and the unrighteous.
Some may ask: But you, where do you stand, in the face of COVID-19?
My faith is rooted in the story of Jesus of Nazareth, the Saviour and Lord of the cosmos. The genius of that story, is that the ultimate transcendent is present in the mundane of earthly life; the Creator loves his world and is present among his creation; for, in Him “we live and move and have our being”. What a joy and privilege to be part of cloud of witnesses, in history and across the world, who bear testimony to the presence and power of God, at work in good and bad times; in the face of natural disasters, human catastrophes and plague. I am persuaded that in this moment, the imperative of this faith and assurance, is to get on our knees and pray, as Jesus taught us: “May your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth (assailed with COVID-19) as it is in heaven” (Matt 6:10); and to live that prayer, embodying God’s love that seeks to serve others, particularly the vulnerable and disinherited. Perhaps then we can boldly pray for His reign of love and justice to come, as we demonstrate it to the world.
May COVID-19 open our eyes and ears to see and hear God’s world, as he does; and respond to his invitation as Jesus’s followers, to be his hands and his feet, bringing hope to a broken world.
R. Evon Benson-Idahosa, has put it well, in a recent blog Losing Her Religion: Nigeria’s Faith Unveiled in the Face of COVID-19:
“As such, could this pandemic present an opportunity for churches to fill the glaring gaps and practically serve the last and the least in a manner that reveals who we profess to be as followers of The Way? Might this be an opportunity for the church to put our egos aside and creatively heed Jesus’ instructions to ‘feed my sheep’, to apply the Balm of Gilead, by serving those who will be most physically, mentally and economically impacted? Practically speaking, could we convert our sanctuaries to temporary hospitals or food pantries where those in need can obtain essentials? Can we use the funds of those who have faithfully donated over the years to buy ventilators and personal protective gear for our hospitals and health workers on the front lines? Can we purchase hygiene products and distribute them to those who may be confined to their homes? This, I believe, is our mandate.”
Thank God for many who have put their lives on the line, doing His will “on earth as it is heaven”.
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