A Sunday Thought About Sacraments During This Crisis

Last Sunday we talked about our relationship with Jesus Christ. The previous week focused on Sunday Mass. 

We know our relationship with God overrides all other concerns we may have in this world. That includes our current crisis. With the Church in turmoil, with our government's heavy hand weighing down on us, it can easily distract us from what matters most: salvation. We get caught up in all that impinges on our peace of mind, that undermines the stability of our daily lives. Next thing you know, our relationship with God takes second place, putting our salvation at risk. Not good.

We know, too, that the Sacraments help us grow in holiness, help us to thereby grow closer to God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So anything that gets in the way of our receiving the Sacraments potentially threatens the salvation of our immortal souls. 

The virtually universal suspension of the Sacraments when the C-Virus Mess descended in early 2020, bringing total lock-downs of our churches, resulted in limited, or in many cases, no access to the Sacraments. Our parish was essentially closed for business when it came to the Sacraments: no Mass, no Communion, no Confession. Did priests bring the Sacraments to the sick and dying? I've heard some did to people who were not in hospitals. But, apparently, the answer in many parts of our country, our world, would be mostly no.

No Sacraments.

How did you deal with this?

I suspect that if we polled Catholics we'd get an array of responses. Since we don't have the benefit of such a poll, I'll offer up what I did.

First, I increased my time in prayer. No Mass meant an extra hour or so each day that would have been spent going to Mass. With that extra time, I reorganized my typical routine. Somehow I found my way to praying the Divine Office. (I prefer the traditional form rather than the newfangled, aka, the "Liturgy of the Hours." The texts I use come from Divinum Officium.) Typically, my work schedule and domestic obligations make it impossible to attend to every one of the "hours" at their traditional times (Lauds, Prime, Sext, None, Vespers, Compline. There's even Matins for those of you who don't need much sleep!) 

As many did, I accessed Mass online. No, it's not the same. But it was prayerful time on Sundays and occasionally during the week. 

But what about Confession? Well, with our churches locked, no Sacraments were offered. So I doubled up my Examination of Conscience and made it my business to always say an Act of Perfect Contrition at least once a day. (We've posted about Perfect Contrition many times. Here's one example.)

Well, I don't want to bore with more about me. Plus I don't want to give you the impression that my efforts were anything special, or indicated any degree of holiness. I just did what I thought I should do, what made sense in my own particular circumstances. Everyone's different, so your way of dealing with this likely varies from mine.

But here's something common to all of us: The Sacraments have not always been as readily available as was the case for most of us for most of our lives. In the past, for instance, it was by no means common - even for folks who could attend Mass every Sunday - to receive Communion more than on occasion throughout the year. Customs and practices have varied throughout the Church's history.

Or think of pioneering missionaries who baptized and then moved on to continue to bring the Gospel to other areas. Until more priests arrived - when and if - newly converted Catholics might not have regular access to the Sacraments. Indeed this is the case today in some parts of the world where there are few priests to cover hundreds of square miles. That's even true here in the USA. Folks are lucky if they get Mass on Sunday, never mind during the week.

I found such thoughts somewhat comforting. It occurred to me that Our Lord knew that we may not have access to the Sacraments, not even to Him in the Blessed Sacrament. Perhaps I'm wrong here, but I do think He understands.

Even now that we have Mass offered in our parish, Confession remains a challenge, as does Communion. (We've discussed our situation in the past.) But if there's any bright side to the Mess we've had since March 2020 it's the realization and understanding that we can unite ourselves to Catholics throughout history and throughout the world today who cannot easily access Mass or the Sacraments. United in faith, we simply do our best to grow closer to Our Lord in whatever means He provides. Yes, He did establish His Church for this purpose. But just because some of His bishops and priests do not or cannot fulfill His divine purpose doesn't mean He won't be with us, as He promised, until the end of time. His Church doesn't start and stop with bishops and priests, even if they are ultimately the dispensers of the Sacraments.

He knows if we're doing our best to do His Will as we yearn to be with Him, someday, in eternal happiness.

Happy Sunday!