Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 20 February 2022, by Captain Michael Ramsay
The other night we watched in horror with all the other diners at a packed restaurant in Chilliwack as the TV abruptly switched from the Olympics to show police on horseback and with automatic weapons advancing on a crowd of protesters in Ottawa. You could hear the disbelief as none of us - even those who supported the action - could really comprehend that something like this would be happening in Canada.
On Valentines Day, of all days, when our PM announced that this was coming, my mind went to 1 John 4 because, 'how do I love my neighbour?' has been a question that I -like many people, with many different views- have been and am still really struggling with during Covid-19.
Perfect love drives out fear: People have been filled with so much fear and hate in this country that it is not only driving out love, but it is also clouding our reason - or at least mine! Bars were packed this weekend with people drinking and dancing and in very close contact with each other; we have been at sporting events where people are packed so close together that they can spill their drink on you or spew the food in their mouth on you when they cheer a goal - it doesn't make me feel safe.
But then look at our rules around vaccine passports. In
our province, one must be vaccinated to eat at a restaurant where the server
takes your order from the table. The waiter, however, who goes from table-to-table
does not need to be vaccinated. If unvaccinated people are more likely to carry
the virus, then the legislation is putting all the customers and especially the
staff at risk; if not, then what is the point of the passport - to keep
unvaccinated patrons away from unvaccinated waitstaff?
There is more: like we just said, one must be vaccinated to
eat at a restaurant where the server takes your order from the table; however,
you don’t need to be vaccinated if you place your order at the counter and then
the same waiter brings the meal to your table. The waiter still comes to the table so
why do we need a passport in one case and not the other?
A line that comes to my mind is one that Plato, in his Republic, put in the words of Socrates. When facing his questioners he said, "I am too stupid to be convinced by you". I think this is me relating to our current (especially vaccine) regulations. I am sure smarter people than I am can figure it out.
Wearing masks, washing one’s hands, and social distancing all make a lot of sense when trying to avoid a flu, a cold, or Covid-19. Closing borders and limiting travel are great ways to stop the spread of a global pandemic. Wearing masks, washing one’s hands, social distancing are all things we do here to help the vulnerable stay safe because we love them. We also still check people’s temperatures, and we have plexiglass separators everywhere. At the soup kitchen we even have them on every table separating each diner from the person in front of them. I might even go so far as to recommend that everyone who can be, be vaccinated: I have had 3 shots now!
The reason that I have had three
shots is the same reason why I personally am troubled with our current vaccine mandate – because I am trying to figure out, in this time and place, how to best love my neighbour. I am
vaccinated because I feel that I need to do everything out of love; I need to
do everything possible to help others – even and especially those who are
fearful of unvaccinated people. I would never want to exclude them from anything. I do realize however
that there are people who cannot be vaccinated for health, mental health, moral
and ethical reasons. I cannot possibly be a part of forcing someone to violate
their deeply held moral convictions, can I?
The key for Christians alive at
this juncture in history, I believe, is to not let the devil tempt us into fear and/or hatred
of anyone. Like our scriptures today say, God is love. Everyone
who loves has been born of God and knows God; if we love one another, God lives
in us. Whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have
seen, cannot love God.
Anyone of us who is on social media
should check our posts. If we have posted something that demeans or belittles
proponents of an opposing view, take it down. At the very least, commit to only
building one another up in the future. If you find yourself getting worked up
while you are watching the ‘news’, turn it off. If you find yourself getting
worked up while chatting with someone else, take a breath and say a silent
prayer for them – or better yet, acknowledge the heart of a person you many
disagree with and say a prayer with them. That is an act of love and whoever
loves God loves their neighbour. God is love.
At this time when our country is
seriously and passionately divided, we Christians need to be united in love; we
need to remember when walking with one another that:
·
God loves us all (even
the other guys!) so much so that He sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for
our sins and if anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of
God, God lives in them and they in God.
·
There is no fear
in love. But perfect love drives out fear. The one who fears is not made
perfect in love.
·
And whoever
does not love, does not know God, because God is love; whoever does not love
their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God.
·
For, God is
love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them; if we love one
another, God lives in us.
Let us go from here out into this world of hate and fear and let us be different. Let us refuse to hate one another; let us refuse to fear one another. And let us refuse to ‘other’ one another, and may we always, as brothers and sisters, live and walk in the love of God.
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