A Historic Moment
Living in a tourist destination has its advantages and disadvantages. We’ve mostly enjoyed the immense advantages here, but COVID-19 has changed that dramatically in the past couple of weeks, and perhaps weeks and months to come. Our city is one of the hardest hit by COVID-19 in the country. We’re also one of the first states/provinces in North America that have just declared a state of emergency: people are ordered to stay home, and refrain from all “non-essential” outings or travels.
My generation -and younger generations-have never experienced anything of this magnitude: we’ve never lived through a major war, famine or plague, or any world-wide health and economic crisis. This is truly a historic moment, one we’re not prepared for. Truth be told, I still cannot believe what has happened in the world and in our immediate community is actually happening. Who would have thought a flu-like disease, something most people would normally work through, would bring the world to a halt?
In times of crisis, we tend to resort to things that provide us comfort. For me, that includes objective data analysis. Just to get a grasp on things, I generated these graphs of active COVID-19 cases in countries around the world with respect to each country’s total population[1]. I include only countries where the majority of visitors of this blog come from, in the hope that they may be of some interest or service to my readers. According to these graphs, European countries, namely, Italy, Spain and Germany, are the most affected by COVID-19, and the situation is worsening by the day. In Asia-Pacific, the number of active cases in China has been decreasing for 4 weeks, and the number seems to have reached a plateau in South Korea in the past two weeks, however, Singapore and Australia are seeing increases. In America, there are significant increases in the United States and Canada in the past two weeks. Although the current situation is relatively less severe than that in Europe, the upward trend is alarmingly similar: Canada is where France was ten days ago, and US is where Germany was six days ago.
What is Essential Service
What do you mean, “Not essential”? I teach history and literature. Since when it’s not essential?
T.S.Eliot writes that culture is what makes life worth living, cultural events such as social gatherings, concerts, sports events and church services have all been shut down for the time being. Apparently they are not “essential”, if life can go on without them. The healthcare sector, to which I belong professionally, is considered “essential service”, which must remain functional in times of crisis. Needless to say, health is an important good, however, health is not essential to a dignified life, let alone a godly life.
Perhaps this is time to reflect and remember what is truly essential in our life.
To a Christian, what is essential, the one thing that is necessary, is Christ. A Christian is one who has his being in Christ, his life sustained by the power of God, and enriched by the riches of the glory of God. A Christian is one in whom the grace of God is manifest in both health and sickness, life and death.
This is not a time for fear, but for faith, hope and love. A time to remember the people who have been under our care, and people who have been given us for our good and theirs, our parents, co-workers, and acquaintances. To reach out to those who might be in need of comfort and support, in continuous prayers and providing physical assistance.
In the ancient world, when a nation is in crisis, people would flock to the temples, and appeal to their patron gods for guidance and protection. Since the beginning of Christianity, believers have been exhorted to pray “for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
Notes:
- ^1. The data on active COVID-19 cases is taken from Johns Hopkins Center for Systems Science and Engineering’s dedicated website; The population data is taken from United Nations’ World Population Prospects 2019. https://population.un.org/wpp/Download/Standard/Population