WHAT WOULD JESUS DO IN QUARANTINE?
“I hear the whispers of the crowd, that frighten me from every side, as they consult together against me, plotting to take my life.”
R. Save me, O Lord, in your kindness.” - Psalm 31:14
February didn’t deserve an extra day this year. In fact, our family would have been pretty happy to cut February short. Our family experienced a significant, unexpected loss at the start of February. As the month wore on, every time I have looked at my phone the news was inundated with political turmoil and anxiety about the new coronavirus. The “whispers of the crowd” around us (and in the social media and news feeds) were telling us to succumb to panic and fear. We saw images of empty store shelves, rationing of hand sanitizer, and price-gouging of protective face masks. We entered Lent with a burgeoning sense of dis-ease. The temptation to hoard essentials and isolate ourselves is real. How can we prepare for unknown hardships without despairing and giving into the false spirit?
I have found myself struggling with this tension on a regular basis. Our co-op preschool has a list-serve where people can request substitutes if they cannot cover their classroom shifts. Instead of simply serving to ensure adequate coverage, it looks like a laundry list of things to worry about. “Caleb has the stomach flu, can anyone cover for me?” “Sally has lice.” “Jimmy has influenza or RSV, we can’t make it today.” I rack my brain for our past contact with these kids, I google incubation periods on different ailments. I cling to any sense of control. And so I can understand the irrational need to hoard toilet paper and Eazy Mac. Our basic preparations quickly escalate into panic.
As the case count has exploded, particularly among public figures and people of influence, I have asked myself, “Where would Jesus be in a quarantine?” I believe as long as he could, he would be visiting the sick, tending to the poorest of the poor with no ability to care for themselves. If he became sick (which he might), I imagine him retreating to receive care responsibly. Above all, I imagine him trusting in God’s love and providence no matter what. This Lent, walking with Jesus takes on a whole new meaning. We are quite literally entering into unknown territory with no clear answers or reassurances. However, at the end of the day the invitation is to trust that if we are sick or hospitalized, if we are quarantined, if we are paralyzed by fear, that Jesus himself has already entered into that place of darkness and filled it with love. Although we may be isolated, we are not alone.
“You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.” - Matthew 20:22
Jen Coito