What can I do with you, Ephraim? What can I do with you, Judah? Your piety is like a morning cloud, like the dew that early passes away.
Church as we knew it has been put on an indefinite hold. We can no longer come together and celebrate the Liturgy, as a Church. Some of our members have already lost their jobs, others are afraid they will be next, all of us are trying not to panic.
It is moments like this that we need to remember that we are part of a Church that has been around for two millennia. We have been through this before and we have been through much worse. And our history shows that every time the Church has Gone through an event such as this we have come in it stronger.
We are the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church established on the day of Pentecost by the Holy Spirit with Jesus Christ as our Head. No power on earth can destroy us.
Many times in our history the Faithful have been scattered to the four winds, forced to hide away, unable to come together to celebrate the sacraments. The prophet Hosea says of the people of his day that their piety is like a morning cloud or the dew, it passes away. In times of crisis personal piety, popular piety has been the glue that has bound us together.
I would encourage each of you to grab hold of two thing: your Bible and your Rosary.
In those moments of anxiety, nothing will calm you more than the rhythm of the Rosary, as you repeat those words allow yourself you be immersed in prayer.
With your Bible, follow along with the readings of the Lenten Season available on the Bishops’ website. Or you can pick a book of the Bible a gospel such as Matthew would be my recommendation, and simply begin to read.
We, the Church, have survived many times before and we absolutely will survive this. We will call on the Holy Spirit to show us how we can help our brothers and sisters in need and continue to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. This our faith and it sits on the firmest of foundations.
