Originally, there was another. Babel, they called it. A rebellion against God. Why? Well, people wanted to be God. Here we go again. They wanted to defy God. Build a tower so high and powerful that God couldn’t destroy it with another flood. Defiance. A pyramid-like structure constructed of mud brick in before 2200 BCE. The people were in great disobedience to God. So, what did God do? He confused them and gave them different languages so they couldn’t talk to each other. Hence, the tower wasn’t finished and people scattered. So much for being God or trying to defy Him. Didn’t work out so well, did it?
Here’s another story. Perhaps it’s worse. Certainly, it’s not better. It starts today. Yes. Today. With you and I. The tower of COVId. Yeah, you know the one. There are how many countries in the world today? 195? And, how many languages? 6500? I believe that’s diverse, ok? God mixed it all the and, He’s mixing it up all over again, now. Yes. COVID has become the new Tower of Babel. See, we’ve been trying to be like God since humans came into existence. You may not believe in Adam and Eve, but they sure did. They tried to be like God as well. For that matter, the guy with the pitchfork did as well. Although, he really isn’t a guy with a pitchfork. He much, much craftier and scheming than that. He was the most beautiful of all angels. Trouble is, he wanted God’s place. That didn’t go so well for him. He got kicked out of heaven so fast it made his head spin. Like a bolt of lightning it says in the Book.
Getting back to the COVId tower. I think God is very patient. He must be when He sees all the trouble we get ourselves into, some by design, some by serendipity. What’s the lesson here? What is God trying to teach us in this year of 2020? Obviously, it like Babel, isn’t it? I mean we’ve gone in so many different ways. The whole world has been affected and I don’t see many of us getting together, much less having any sense of compassion or decency. It seems like the whole world stopped caring. Much of not all is about fear. Fear of death. Fear of hope. Fear of faith. Fear of neighbor. Fear of God. The mask is the answer, no, social distancing, no the vaccine. Will we ever get to go outside again without being anxious or afraid? Family members haven’t seen family members. And then, to top it all off, one gets angry. Look at that idiot who’s not wearing a mask. Or maybe, his/her nose is not covered. How many times has he/she worn the same mask. The grocery store is a free-for-all. Restaurants? Forget it. Theaters? Nope. All the stuff we used to do like daily walks to the mall, sports gatherings, family gatherings, a barbecue with your friends and neighbors; that’s all confusing and scary.
I don’t know how many times I’ve listened to my patients in the clinic and at the hospital and have heard confusion about what’s happening. When will this end? Will we ever go back to “normal?” Are you getting the vaccine? What does normal even look like anymore. And on top of all of that, you look back at pictures, movies, show, and events in your life when everyone was “happy,” and you wonder: “was I really happy then, and if I was, why does it hurt so much to see me in those pictures?” See, old time don’t necessarily inspire great memories. Why? Well, because there may not be those old times again exactly the way they were. Hey, we are all inching close to death, right? Well, death didn’t take a holiday, it took a quantum leap forward. Yes. We all go back to the Spanish Influenza of 1918. 60 million lost their lives. They got through it. Why can’t we. We are in the 21st century with all the latest technology. We got gobs over those people back then. We got social media, medicine, infrastructure, and the like. We should not be afraid. This is a brave new world. Is it?
What is different? We are. I can’t tell you about how the people of the past coped with whatever, whether it be influenza or famine or world wars. I do know this. It’s different. People are not united. They’re distant. They’ve created a trench, a moat around their fancy homes I like to call prisons. Yes, they’re our homes, but they’re prisons. Just ask anybody. I know, there are those who claim the virus isn’t a big deal. Who cares. It’s all concocted. It’s all a sham. It’s a conspiracy. They’re overestimating the impact. They want us sacred so they can control us. Open up everything. There’s herd immunity. The cry: “ I don’t know anybody who really got sick from it.” Again, confusion. People a speaking a different language through experience, their experience. But, is it collective experience? Sadly, no. It’s likened to being on a superstar basketball team and winning 6 rings, being a participant on the court and, well, a fan in the stands. When it’s you who watches your patient die in front of you and he/she is only 30 years old! That’s different, isn’t it. When, time after time, moment after moment, patient after patient, are draped over without any family members being present and you’re left there alone thinking: “when is the next one going to die?” That is confusion and, this tower of COVID has brought that upon the whole Earth.
It’s invisible. Is it on surfaces? Is it on my pizza? Is it in my hair? How many times should I wash my hand? Where do I go? Where can I go? Should I stay home? What happened to trust? What happened to faith? What happened to God? Yes. Where is He in all of this? Isn’t He supposed to protect us? I mean there’s so much death and suffering. Doesn’t He care about us? After all, He made us. Is it that simple? Blame God for everything. He’s all powerful. He’s all good. So why evil? Why COVID? Why are people acting so disjointed as if it’s all about me, me ,me, and no one else? What has COVID done to our world that there’s no cure for our own selfishness? Yes. Blaming God goes only so far. That He’s in charge, all powerful and all good, yes He is. He’s God. You’re not. That He is the author of evil? No. He’s not. Remember a little thing called free will? Well, it messed us all up, including the universe. And COVID, well, that’s not different from God’s point of view.
Where do we go from here? Look at it this way; you’ve got two options. One is to pout, gloat, and be miserable in your suffering with endless anxiety and worry. Another option is vastly different. This is not about a feel good message. Puff, and it all goes away. This is not luck or coincidence. This is not rolling the dice or tarot. This IS about God, but in a much more relational perspective. Look, God is not oblivious to pain and suffering. I mean, look at us! If you were God, wouldn’t you suffer looking at us? There’s hatred, evil, idolatry, pride, jealousy, envy, immorality, vanity, and rage. Billions of people at each other’s throats while we are manipulated and controlled by government, news, social media, political correctness, religion, technocrats, and whomever else can shape the foundations of sense of intellect, feelings, and will; our very souls! The world has gone to hell. Yes, and we did it to ourselves. This is not new. It’s been going on since the beginning. But, let’s be honest. This is not about God not caring, not being good enough, not being powerful enough to remedy to situation. That’s the exact problem we face: ourselves. Undeniably, we want to blame anyone, including God, but ourselves. That’s easy. He did it. I’m good. I don’t deserve this suffering. I go to church, whatever. In mot responsible. It’s over there, not in my house. I work, pay the bills. I take care of my kids. I’m good, and I’ll be the first to tell you.
Plan B. You’re not good. No one is good. If you think we are good, read history. That’s the problem with this country. Confusion. Everyone thinks they’re better than everyone else. The tower of COVID has brought goodness to light. The fact is, we are in darkness. All of us. No exception. I don’t care if you think yourself Mother Teresa. You’re not, and neither was she! We are all sinful, disgusting creatures meritorious of total abandonment from the only Person who is good: God. See, God got our attention or He should have, with COVID. he created this “Tower of Babel,” this disconnection, this disjointedness of all humankind so we could pay attention to what’s really important. See, God wants a relationship with us. Not religion, a relationship. How do I know this? Jesus. He hung on a cross so that we could be with God. Yes. I know. You don’t believe in Jesus. Well, maybe that’s what’s wrong. We are so confused that maybe we should start. Sure there are other religions, but there’s’ only one Jesus. You may not think He’s God, but You cannot deny He existed. You cannot deny that He died. Some deny that he didn’t die on that cross. Well, again, there’s that history part. He did. Wait, no one has ever come back alive? Well, It’s either a lie and He’s in some mass grave somewhere, He’s nuts and no one should follow Him (tell that one to the 2.5 billion people who follow Him), or He happens to be who He says He is: God. In which case, yes, He rose from the dead.
What does that have to do with COVID? Well, let’s get back to the suffering part. See, we all suffer. Life sucks. Jesus suffered. COVID confused us, but Jesus unites us? Why? Because of His suffering. See, as God, He condescended to become like one of us. And when He did that (which some celebrate every 25th of December, and not that clown Santa), He showed us real and true suffering. Maybe, we are like that. Maybe we can suffer like Jesus. Maybe, when we are scared, anxious, and angered, we can remember that we have the God, Christ, Jesus, who knows suffering and we can empathize with His suffering and our own. Maybe, our suffering won’t be as bad. He will “soften” our blow because He did what we do every single day: suffer. More so now that the confusion of COVID has got all of us in a whirlwind of suffering and fear. Maybe it’s about giving thanks. Thank you God for COVID. Thanks for reminding us of You. Thanks for reminding us of family and what’s truly important. Perhaps, maybe we could act more like You instead of more like us. Think about it.