Pondering Lockdown

 This weekend we celebrate the Assumption of Mary: the feast which celebrates the assuming of Mary, body, and soul into heaven. This is one of the most recent dogmas of the Church which have been proclaimed as infallible. Such a statement not only recognizes her unique role in the salvation history of the Church. This sees as intimately connected the human bond with her divine son, Jesus but also the intimate bond that she has with the Body of the Church. This acknowledges our own desire for bodily resurrection and to ponder the kingdom of God by the witness of our lives.

I believe it is significant that we celebrate this feast in the middle of lockdown. Many of us are called into an involuntary "stay at home" order. There can be a sense of frustration that can build up which longs for freedom and certainty. We also notice how readily fear about having enough to live on causes people to panic and storm the shelves for toilet paper and meat. We know that we need these regular supplies but it can be the sense of trust that is put to the test. We listen to the news and we react rather than reflect on what is needed for the moment. We can tend to overconsume and overcompensate by expressing our fears in concrete actions. We tend to overspend and overconsume what seems everyday necessities. There can be an addiction that manifests our deepest insecurities through our actions.

Yet this is where the life of Mary can accompany us through this time. She was deeply challenged by God and the life of her son, Jesus. In seeking to understand she was not involved as a passive observer of his life but as an active participant. Much of what we know is recorded in the Gospels where she pondered where His life was interwoven with her own. This can often be seen in the devotion of the seven sorrows of Mary: the prophecy of Simeon; the flight into Egypt and massacre of the innocents, the loss of Jesus in the temple; meeting Jesus on the way to Calvary; standing at the foot of the Cross, the pieta; and laying Jesus in the tomb). I believe that her life stands at the heart of the story of each Christian. Just as her life is interwoven with these sorrows it is interwoven with our own in the time of this pandemic. There are signs that over our faith tradition that when we are in greatest need our heartfelt prayer becomes her prayer too. She leads us to notice that this is a prayer that unites both faith and practice.

In our own time, we also notice that this is linked to how we consider our lives and what brings meaning. As you ticked the box in the Census you may have wondered whether you are just making up the numbers or whether something deeper is being asked. There is a connection between the faith we express and the life we live. We are not just called to a brand name but to a deeper recognition of what it means to live a faith-filled life. While Churches are shut many can question what is essential to life. Does going to Mass matter and will anybody notice my absence? Yet I believe this tackles the question from the wrong angle as we could notice the same reality in the sports arena or in our social activities. Does it may a difference if I am not there? In an age where we can pay subscriptions for services, our personal interactions can be reduced to what we can afford. The sense that our own participation in living a life of faith can be bought and sold. Yet our presence matters! We are called to be active participants not passive observers of the Christian life.

So where to now. What is the way out of the pandemic? Many point to the importance of good health protocols through hygiene and social distancing, being vaccinated, and supporting people in great need. Yet there can also be subscripts that need to be addressed which are left unanswered. We do need to work for the common good as everybody's contribution to the commonwealth is essential whether it is paid or unpaid work. We need to name what isolates the goodwill in our community through personal recrimination even when it names and shames those who are vectors of the virus. We need a deeper sense of how to be human and to be faithful.

I believe that this is where the pondering heart of Mary can lead us in our prayer. We need to be people who are not abstracted from our circumstances or overcome by our sorrows. She was a woman of faith who gathered people in the love of her son. Jesus. I believe the same is true of us as a Church we need to gather people in faith even while we seem to be apart. To discover ways in which our mission is not to be distanced from the sorrows of the world but to be deeply invested in our prayer and in our actions with the life of Jesus. It calls us to ponder what brings life and what does not. We stand in solidarity with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We are called to be people who beat in time with the heart of God which brings hope to our world. To ponder, to reflect, and to act in harmony with God and with each other.