Thursday, 9 April 2020: Nothing can separate us from the love of God.
A long and difficult Lent is now coming to an end as we celebrate
Holy Week. As so often happens, the Lent we had planned is not the Lent that we
got. Who could have thought that we would have to give up access to the Holy
Sacrifice of the Mass? Especially during this most holy season.
The covid-19 virus is now keeping us apart from each other,
but it cannot separate us from Christ. If we cannot attend Church, we can make
our homes a ‘domestic church.’ We are separated from the Sacrament, but we can
still draw close to Christ in prayer. How can Christ ever be far from us when
the Holy Spirit dwells within us?
As St. Paul said:
"We know that all things work together for good for those who
love God. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor
depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the
love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
We need to see everything in the light of God’s providence
and His permissive will. In this world we are subject to many misfortunes and
sufferings which are beyond our control. As Pope Leo XIII wrote at the start of
the twentieth century:
"We cannot expect an end to troubles in this world but rather we
must steel our souls to bear them. May Christ look down in mercy upon us and, embracing
in His loving-kindness all of mankind, may He remember His own words: I, if I
be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to Myself.”
We still have much for which to be thankful. We can still
make these days holy. We can encourage each other to participate remotely in
the liturgies that are being celebrated by Cardinal Collins at St. Michael’s
Cathedral, which are all being live-streamed.
St. Clair of Assisi, one day
being too ill go to Church, was given a miraculous vision of the Mass. St.
Clair needed a miracle; we have the internet.
Christ is the redeemer of mankind. His resurrection from the
dead was not simply a miracle, like the raising of Lazarus. Christ, by his
death and resurrection, completely transformed our relationship to God. As St.
Paul taught: “For as by a man (Adam) came death, by a man (Christ) has come
also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ
shall all be made alive.” As Jesus himself said, “Behold, I am making all
things new.”
As we now celebrate these holy days, let us ask God to have
mercy on us and quickly to bring to an end this pandemic which has already
taken so many lives. May God grant us every heavenly blessing, and may Our Lady
and St. Joseph powerfully intercede for us. And on Easter Sunday may we greet
each with these joyful words:
Christos Anesti! —
Christ is risen!
Alithos
anesti! —
He is truly risen!
