Closed Buildings I’ve taken some heat over the past two weeks over our buildings being locked. We’ve been used to open buildings, and I’ve always believed in open buildings and once this health emergency has passed, we will go back to an open building policy.
But during this health emergency it’s important for us to follow the recommendations of the health officials with social distancing and avoiding all unnecessary trips outside of the house. It’s particularly difficult to follow them when we might not be ill or when we won’t know the real effects that our social distancing has had for several weeks. But every contact that we have with someone else is an opportunity to either spread the virus to someone else or to have the virus spread to us. I’ve been strict in following these recommendations myself and all of us need to stay the course.
I see it as a pro-life issue. If we can delay the virus’s impact so that everyone doesn’t get sick at the same time, then the medical system will be better able to take care of everyone’s needs as they arise. We will never know the name of the person’s life that we save, but every contact that we can avoid now, helps to save both another life and our own.
Prayer Areas and Prayer Books As many of us are at home, one thing to help your prayer life is to designate an area in your house as a prayer area. Set up a chair facing a cross and/or a statue or religious picture. Have a candle available that you can light when you pray. I, like most priests, have such an area in the rectory. Mine is in a sitting room that is connected to my bedroom. When I enter that space, I have trained myself to be quiet and to pray.
Also, I have downloaded the breviary, several translations of the Bible, and other spiritual books onto my Kindle. At first praying with my Kindle didn’t have the charm of holding a book in my hands while I pray. As I became accustomed to praying with my Kindle, it’s had no negative effect at all. On the contrary, I have found that it’s a plus to be able to have all my prayer resources at my fingertips wherever I go. It’s a lot easier to carry my Kindle than a stack of books.
These are a couple of tips that I can offer so that you can continue to stay close to the Lord, even when the sacraments might not be publicly available.