Our 2nd Easter During This C-Virus Mess

As we did for Holy Week, let's skip back to last year and Easter Sunday. The C-Virus Mess had us fully in its grip by then. After thinking the lock-downs and quarantines, and all the rest that accompanied them, would pass within a couple of weeks, it eventually became clear things weren't going to be anywhere near "normal" for the foreseeable future. Easter came as that realization had sunk in.

We didn't have Mass last year. But in our parts we do now. Maybe some of you still don't have Mass. Whatever your situation, it's still surrounded by the Mess that keeps us under wraps, to one degree or another. We haven't been able to escape yet.

So it's now our 2nd Easter living in a fashion none of us could have imagined when 2020 began (seems long ago). Then again, as you'll see from our re-post from last Easter, our family's world had already been torn to pieces, having nothing to do with COVID. We were already reeling when the pandemic and the Mess it spurred arrived. 

Thank God we've all gotten through all this - so far.

Here's what we said last year:

Last year "Happy Easter" came with a question mark (?) rather than the traditional exclamation point (!). We had recently lost our eldest son to a massive stroke. An otherwise healthy young man was suddenly, without warning, felled. After performing emergency surgery, the doctors held out little hope for recovery. Our son fought for 18 days before he died as the New Year began, despite our prayers for a miracle.

His death left his young wife and almost two-year-old daughter, his brothers, and, of course, his parents, in a state of shock and grief. Those of you who have lived through the death of a precious loved one know that the days after the death, wake, and funeral don't get any easier. If anything, they're harder.

This year, we're all living in the midst of a mess - the craziness of what I've come to call our "C-virus World." While some of us who can work at home and still get paid may be bearing up financially, some of us have lost our jobs. It's tough making ends meet when there's no income coming in.

Most of us, I suspect, haven't been able to spend any time in the same room with loved ones. In our case, we're doing quite a bit of Face-Timing. But it's not the same as being there. Then again, we take what we can get. Frankly, compared to losing a child, any degree of inconvenience just doesn't add up to much of a big deal. But I can certainly understand if your struggling with a tough set of circumstances.

We just finished up with Lent, which under normal circumstancescalls for a special degree of struggle. We undertake special acts of prayer, penance, and almsgiving. They help us make reparation for our sins. Besides reparation, our fasting and other acts of self-denial also help strengthen us to face the daily struggle between good and evil which accompanies us throughout our lives. This past Lent, we've added our struggles with the inconveniences of our C-virus World.

With all this, have you been strengthened by your Lenten discipline? Maybe?

If you study your Catholic religion, and read good spiritual works, you may have learned that our efforts may not produce palpable results. We pray, we fast, we mortify ourselves, but we may not feel any different when all is said and done. We may not notice any improvement in our behavior. It can seem like we're exactly as we were before. And yet we're taught that it is our efforts that matter, not any results. It seems Our Lord takes notice of our sincere attempts to be better. At least that's my understanding.

So, for example, when we make sincere, special efforts of prayer, penance, and almsgiving throughout Lent, we may or may not notice any improvement in our spiritual life. We still struggle with temptation, slip and fall into sin, treat others uncharitably at times, focus all too much on ourselves - making more money, our personal comfort, professional recognition and success, and all the rest of those worldly pursuits that occupy so much of our time. And yet, somewhere deep in our souls, the meter was moved slightly from the left to the right, from the bad to the good. Even if only half and inch, nevertheless it moved.

What matters is simply that we continue continue to strive to be better. Neither our neighbor nor ourselves may see the difference. It doesn't matter. God will be our judge.

So with the arrival of Easter Sunday, I'm making no attempt to weigh the effect of my Lenten discipline. I know whether my efforts were serious or half-hearted. And when they were serious, I know whether and when I offered them sincerely to Our Lord on His Cross. Whether any special or particular feelings accompanied those efforts was entirely beside the point. The only thing that mattered was the will to make the effort.

As I've learned more and more about my Catholic religion, I've understood that "Happy Easter" doesn't have to be accompanied by any special or particular feelings either. The "Happy" refers to the astounding reality of Our Lord's Resurrection. Some years "Happy" included a particularly beautiful liturgy, one with traditional music performed by skilled singers and musicians. Or it could include a festive family gathering, with lots of love and great food and drink. When I was a kid, it would always include a big chocolate bunny.

This year, we won't be able to attend any beautiful liturgy. And our family gathering will be restricted to those of us currently living in our home - which eliminates a good chunk of our loved ones. As it did last year, it will also include memories of our son, both happy and sad.

In the end, though, all that will really matter is the Resurrection of Our Lord. His Resurrection has helped us bear the terrible sickness and death of our son. The Resurrection will help us cope with his absence from our family during our Easter celebrations. The grace we receive from celebrating the Resurrection might make it easier to deal with the reduced circumstances imposed by our C-virus world.

Whatever your personal circumstances might be in the midst of all this craziness, please accept best wishes for a...

Happy Easter!