Yesterday our church, along with many other churches, announced that worship services, Bible studies & other activities have been cancelled at least for the next two weeks. News about the pandemic continues to grow more ominous, so one could conclude that such announcements will continue into the near future.
During my quiet time this morning I read the Introit for the 4th Sunday in Lent. These words from Psalm 28 seem especially comforting. "The Lord is my strength & my shield; my heart trusts in Him, & I am helped. The Lord is the strength of His people, a fortress of salvation for His anointed one. Save Your people & bless Your inheritance; be their shepherd & carry them forever."
And then there are St. Paul's words in Philippians 4:6. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer & supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."
My prayer is that the Lord would grant us relief from this pandemic . . . that He would bring healing to those who are sick . . . that He would bring hope to those who are quarantined . . . that He would grant an extra measure of grace to health care providers . . . that He would grant an extra measure of godly wisdom, knowledge, & discernment to government & other leaders who are making difficult decisions for all of us . . . that He would sustain our pastors as they continue to minister to His people.
CORONAVIRUS
"That doesn’t mean that COVID-19 can’t be a catastrophe. Maybe a million Americans will die. What happens, though, if coronavirus pandemic comes in at the lower ends of the death-toll predictions? Many people won’t view it as a success of preparedness but rather a media-generated partisan panic. Americans may be less inclined to listen to the warnings next time.
"Dismissing concerns about the virus is stupid and dangerous. But so is spreading panic that induces people to unnecessarily use resources needed for the sick. People are already out there buying metric tons of toilet paper. What’s going to happen at the height of the epidemic? Around 80 percent of those who contract coronavirus don’t even need to be hospitalized, and the vast majority aren’t in mortal danger. Repeating the worst-case scenario of over a million dead as an “expected” result creates the impression that death is imminent." David Harsanyi, National Review Online, 3/14
"Limiting contact with countries that have much higher infection and death rates is a commonsense move. Biden is correct that Trump’s travel ban won’t stop the spread of the virus, but that isn’t the reason for the ban. It is to slow the spread of the disease and make the coming onslaught of patients more manageable . . . Possibly Democrats are primed to criticize Trump no matter what he does. But Trump’s approach is based on solid science, and the Democrats have to bear some responsibility for delays in testing that occurred because of the oppressive regulatory environment that they have continuously advocated." John R. Lott, Jr., Townhall, 3/14
"You know what people are missing as they hoard toilet paper and hand sanitizer? They are missing that our lives are gifts. We are blessed to ever be here in the first place. Everything we have in life is a blessing. Our families. Our homes. Our jobs. You may think you earned it all, but none of it would be without a loving God who created you and the world." Kathryn Lopez, Townhall, 3/14
"It’s true that the coronavirus is causing upheaval around the world. Whole countries are being quarantined. Massive sports events are being canceled. Schools are being closed. The stock markets are collapsing. But this is a mere tremor compared to what is coming. One day the whole earth will be shaken. As the author of Hebrews tells us, the Lord “has promised, ‘Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ The words ‘once more’ indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain” (Hebrews 12:26-27). Everything will be shaken on that day . . .
"Yet even in the midst of this terrifying description, there are words of hope for God’s people. In fact, there is a divine invitation to take refuge in Him: “Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. See, the LORD is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer” (Isaiah 26:20–21)." Michael Brown, Townhall, 3/14
You know what people are missing as they hoard toilet paper and hand sanitizer? They are missing that our lives are gifts. We are blessed to ever be here in the first place. Everything we have in life is a blessing. Our families. Our homes. Our jobs. You may think you earned it all, but none of it would be without a loving God who created you and the world . . . There are people truly struggling on a good day, financially, trying to fulfill their obligations and have some semblance of a healthy life with healthy relationships. You may know all too well. Will this time of coronavirus help us see one another and love one another? This is a time that should change us. Our lives may not be what we thought they were. Our sense of security may have been all off. If we are Christians, do we really trust in God alone, or have those just been words we have occasionally said in rote prayer? Kathryn Lopez, National Review Online 3/16
Now Americans will do what we always do best: overcome any personal sacrifice, help one another, and face whatever is our enemy—inconvenient and difficult though it may be. Today, at our house, in our eighth day of self-quarantine, we are catching up on all that we’ve missed when out and about leading our usual, hectic lives. We can all do this! John Warren, Townhall 3/18
"Limiting contact with countries that have much higher infection and death rates is a commonsense move. Biden is correct that Trump’s travel ban won’t stop the spread of the virus, but that isn’t the reason for the ban. It is to slow the spread of the disease and make the coming onslaught of patients more manageable . . . Possibly Democrats are primed to criticize Trump no matter what he does. But Trump’s approach is based on solid science, and the Democrats have to bear some responsibility for delays in testing that occurred because of the oppressive regulatory environment that they have continuously advocated." John R. Lott, Jr., Townhall, 3/14
"You know what people are missing as they hoard toilet paper and hand sanitizer? They are missing that our lives are gifts. We are blessed to ever be here in the first place. Everything we have in life is a blessing. Our families. Our homes. Our jobs. You may think you earned it all, but none of it would be without a loving God who created you and the world." Kathryn Lopez, Townhall, 3/14
"It’s true that the coronavirus is causing upheaval around the world. Whole countries are being quarantined. Massive sports events are being canceled. Schools are being closed. The stock markets are collapsing. But this is a mere tremor compared to what is coming. One day the whole earth will be shaken. As the author of Hebrews tells us, the Lord “has promised, ‘Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ The words ‘once more’ indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain” (Hebrews 12:26-27). Everything will be shaken on that day . . .
"Yet even in the midst of this terrifying description, there are words of hope for God’s people. In fact, there is a divine invitation to take refuge in Him: “Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. See, the LORD is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer” (Isaiah 26:20–21)." Michael Brown, Townhall, 3/14
You know what people are missing as they hoard toilet paper and hand sanitizer? They are missing that our lives are gifts. We are blessed to ever be here in the first place. Everything we have in life is a blessing. Our families. Our homes. Our jobs. You may think you earned it all, but none of it would be without a loving God who created you and the world . . . There are people truly struggling on a good day, financially, trying to fulfill their obligations and have some semblance of a healthy life with healthy relationships. You may know all too well. Will this time of coronavirus help us see one another and love one another? This is a time that should change us. Our lives may not be what we thought they were. Our sense of security may have been all off. If we are Christians, do we really trust in God alone, or have those just been words we have occasionally said in rote prayer? Kathryn Lopez, National Review Online 3/16
Now Americans will do what we always do best: overcome any personal sacrifice, help one another, and face whatever is our enemy—inconvenient and difficult though it may be. Today, at our house, in our eighth day of self-quarantine, we are catching up on all that we’ve missed when out and about leading our usual, hectic lives. We can all do this! John Warren, Townhall 3/18
POLITICAL POTPOURRI
SOCIALISMDon’t write off the socialist revival just yet. Sanders might not win the Democratic nomination. But this outcome does not mean the forces that propelled him to second-place finishes in the two most recent Democratic primaries will vanish overnight. Abandoning the intellectual fight against socialism, both inside and outside the Democratic Party, would cede the field to an increasingly sophisticated and networked band of ideological activists whose influence in media and politics is greater than their numbers. Such ambivalence could have devastating consequences for American society . . . It is the decline in institutional religion that drives the resurgence of socialism. Matthew Continetti, National Review Online, 3/14
JOE BIDEN
"Yes, we need to make room for verbal slip-ups among people who are tirelessly barnstorming around the country and giving public speeches. But any look at a video of Biden in a previous campaign for president shows that the former vice president has diminished. If he has one of these moments in a debate with President Trump, it could be fatal for his campaign. In that sense, he should be anxious to debate Bernie Sanders this weekend and prove that he has what it takes.
"None of this should be construed as a pass to ignore the deficiencies of Trump’s character and state of mind, or questions about Bernie Sanders’s age and health. But America seems to pick the more energetic candidate when it can, and right now Joe Biden seems to be putting on a show of having vim and vigor without actually possessing it. He looks like a hostage to his age and the needs of his party — and hostage situations tend to seem stable right up until the moment they go sideways." Michael Brendan Dougherty, NRO 3/14
(Joe Biden is) running as vanilla ice cream. Vanilla ice cream is the most popular flavor not because it’s everyone’s favorite, but because it’s the least objectionable flavor. Jonah Goldberg, NRO 3/18
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