Five years ago the world changed. The normal noises and images of life were silenced and dimmed. Yet within it all, amidst the deathly despair, came sounds and visions of living hope.
On this Covid-19 Day of Reflection, we remember how, after a couple of weeks of anticipation, the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the nation, saying ‘From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction. You must stay at home.’ Perhaps you remember where you were at the time.
We’d seen the reports of this virus in Asia. Then the first case in the UK. Then the harrowing news reports from inside hospitals. The lockdowns and restrictions on movement. The wearing of face masks and social distancing. Some were told to shield. There was the closing of churches. The deaths. The ever increasing deaths.
Within all those losses we regained a concern for others. Acts of kindness and generosity and appreciation. Churches holding services online. We stood in the street and clapped the NHS. Vaccinations were developed. Restrictions were eased and reinstated.
There was also a sense that we didn’t want to go back to normal. Amidst the worst of times, things had been found and refound about the best of humanity.
And now five years on, the world is in another mess. Misinformation rules and truth has to be verified. Nation rises up against nation. The NHS, so lauded back then, is, in the words of others, broken. Our churches are not as safe as we thought they used to be.
And yet there are still many good things in our world. Many of us have very good experiences of the NHS. Our churches, at least at a parish level, are showing signs of life and growth.
So on this day of reflection, what have we learnt?
As Lent begins
, we recall how it was in that wilderness time that Jesus found himself in difficult terrain. Not just that of the desert itself but in being tempted and tormented by the devil. We might find ourselves reflecting on the wilderness time of the pandemic lockdowns. We were perhaps tempted to break the rules – as some did – and we were certainly tormented by the circumstances which surrounded us.
The Church of England’s theme this Lent is Living Hope. ‘In Lent we journey with Jesus on the difficult and thorny road that leads all the way to the cross on Good Friday – and beyond, to the transformation of Easter Day. God invites us to bring to him our own journey through everyday life. The hope God offers us is not wishful thinking. It is, as the Bible suggests, something alive – real, robust, rooted. In the disappointment of daily setbacks and the pain of deeper hurts, we discover that God is present with us through it all. And God promises a future where all things are healed and made new.’
So as we look back on a time which was difficult and life-challenging may we also look forward to a hopeful and life-enriching Lent.
Alluding to the words of St Benedict, the Benedictine monk, Thomas Kardong advocated that life is to be ‘a continuous Lent… and look forward to Holy Easter with joy and spiritual longing.’
If you are in Devon, you’d be welcome to join Jane and I at a Lent Quiet Morning on the theme, Living Hope on 25 March.
Please also join me for Book Launch Events (in person & online) for Hopes and Expectations later this month.
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