For those who are still unconvinced that all but the most stubborn have become glassy-eyed disciples in a new and seemingly irresistible cult, I give you this – sorry, I don’t know what to call it – thing, allegedly written by The Right Reverend Richard Bott, Moderator of the United Church of Canada.
Creator,
as I prepare to go into the world,
help me to see the sacrament
in the wearing of this cloth –
let it be “an outward sign
of an inward grace” –
a tangible and visible way
of living love for my neighbours,
as I love myself.Christ,
since my lips will be covered,
uncover my heart,
that people would see my smile
in the crinkles around my eyes.
Since my voice may be muffled,
help me to speak clearly,
not only with my words,
but with my actions.Holy Spirit,
as the elastic touches my ears,
remind me to listen carefully –
and full of care –
to all those I meet.
May this simple piece of cloth
be shield and banner,
and each breath that it holds,
be filled with your love.In your Name
and in that love,
I pray.May it be so.
May it be so.
Frankly I don’t see much the matter with this. I myself feel much safer both actively and passively with both my flu shots done; but as I go into indoor spaces here in BC, I still go masked, to reassure those I come in contact with.
My two jabs were at the still-visible site of my smallpox vaccination. Lest we forget.
A quotation from a journal article I copy-edited today may be apropos:
“Although scientific evidence showing that facemasks could effectively reduce the infectivity of COVID-19 is lacking (Vainshelboim, 2021), facemasks may provide a sense of self-protection, thereby improving mental health (Cotrin et al., 2020; Wang et al., 2020) due to the propaganda on the efficacy of facemasks and containment policies that require compulsory facemask wearing in public spaces (see Gill, 2020).”
While the authors are talking about the situation in China, if true, this assertion has much wider applicability. For the record, I am double vaccinated + 3 weeks.
Scientific evidence lacking? Propaganda on efficacy of facemasks? Then, Gordon Arthur, why do we have to wear masks? There’s information out there like this that doubts & there’s information out there that confirms wearing masks as well.
I would refer you to a comment by Anthony Fauci last year: masks are more about public confidence than public safety. Furthermore, I quoted an article for a peer-reviewed academic journal that I copy-edited. I did not write it.
If the authorities took masks seriously, they would have mandated the wearing of KN-95s. Bandanas, which still meet the requirement, offer no protection whatever: in viral terms, they have holes in them big enough to drive a bus through.
The ill effects of mishandling may well outweigh any positive value.
I still wear a mask, been vaccinated twice. I feel, it’s best to be safe. For instance, wearing a mask is voluntary in some places now, I still wear a mask. I went to a ‘Preventative Medicine Doctor’ for years is why I think the way I do.
Do you want a gold star?
If I remember correctly, active COVID-19 cases have increased after facemask mandate was lifted in Israel. There were 2.3 active cases/100,000 people on June 5. Then, cases have been rising ever since, e.g., 74.9 on July 17, 127.3 on July 24, 208.2 on July 31.
Correlation is not causation, and neither can one metric isolated from its context provide an adequate idea of what is happening. Cases will inevitably rise with vaccinations – Israel is a highly vaccinated nation – as normal activity resumes. Indeed, some nations have indicated they will cease counting cases when their population reaches a certain vaccination threshold. The wearing of a facemask (or lack thereof) is a tangential detail in the context of a vaccinated population.
Absent the Trinitarian language, this could be an Islamic ritual to be spoken while donning the niqab.
COVID-19 is a developing story. We will know more about it in 2022 than in 2021. We are learning something new everyday. As Christians, we fear God, but not any virus.
I think it would be more accurate to say “As Christians, we should fear God, but not any virus.”
As it is, I don’t see much evidence that Christians are more in fear of God than the COVID-19 virus. Correction: I don’t see any evidence of it.
Whether we like it or not, COVID-19 is alive and well in many parts of the world today. COVID-19 affects us differently depending on where we live in P.E.I. or Alberta, etc. We have different kinds of social support or none. The issue of sickness is always a difficult one to deal with. We know that God alone has the right and power to give life and take it away according to His own wisdom (Job 2:10). The global pandemic may turn at least some people away from themselves. They may turn to God, the Creator and perhaps their Saviour. God desires us to notice our own weakness and neediness so that we can seek Him and find Him. We cannot ignore COVID-19 which is being reported in the news everyday. But we must remember that God’s ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:9). Christian believers can certainly love and help others, especially the sick and the suffering. During the current pandemic, we can choose not to be selfish. We should do good to others. We shall continue to seek God and follow Him even when COVID-19 will probably continue to circulate and evolve.