Reflection
As we experience this pandemic, there is one thing made clear, we are all connected; we are all responsible for one another. This insidious disease plays no favorites nor can we. If we are to control it, we must act together. The facts are there for all to see. Where we unite to restrict its spread, we win; where we are divided, we lose. Sadly, the loss is manifested in sickness and death. It is a place where rights and responsibilities merge. We all have the right to be protected from disease, and we are responsible to protect one another. Individual rights never exist without personal responsibilities. We cannot exercise our own rights and ignore the rights of others. Whatever the action required, no matter how personally annoying, we are responsible for the good of all. “Personal liberty does not give me the right to drill a hole in the side of the boat we all share.“ This is a time of challenge to our core beliefs about the value of each human life and to the maturity of our actions.
Prayer
May I value my neighbor’s well-being as I do my own.
Action
During this time, model your concern for the common good: wear a face mask when needed, practice social distancing, observe common sense safety rules. Only go out when necessary. Don’t complain. Be grateful to essential workers.
Suggested Reading
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Philippians 2:4
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
Galatians 6:2
Take care of yourselves for a future that will come. And remembering in that future what has happened will do you good. Take care of the now, for the sake of tomorrow.
Pope Francis
Pandemic influenza is by nature an international issue; it requires an international solution.
Margaret Chan
Help thy brother’s boat across and lo! thine own has reached the shore.
Hindu proverb
Saving a life just got much more important than savoring a lifestyle.
Amit Kalantri
Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.
Helen Keller
No matter what he does, every person on earth plays a central role in the history of the world.
Paulo Coelho
It is indubitably an unconditional imperative that we not only stay at home to be safe but also maintain our sanity and, by all means, stay alive. It is the worst of times that demands extreme caution and measure, where the worst of human behaviors is likely to emerge—subverting moral decency, civility, and tolerance—to control, to divide, or worst of all, to kill or be killed from the consequent anarchic chaos and violence
Danny Castillones Sillada
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
Margaret Mead