The Virus of Selfish Indifference
Has anyone not been impacted by this current pandemic? Even our beloved two-year-old neighbor knows that he cannot play on the playground equipment at the park. If you ask him why, he gets a funny look on his face and says, “why-wus” (virus). The destructive power of this tiny virus has caused widespread fear and exposed our personal and collective human frailty. What the world needs most right now is mercy. In a recent homily, Pope Francis reminds us that Jesus responds with tender mercy to our suffering, our failings, our losses, and encourages us to respond to one another in the same way.
When Thomas the apostle struggled with unbelief, the Lord waited for Thomas. Mercy does not abandon those who stay behind. When we are overwhelmed with fear and uncertainty, Jesus tends to our hearts with mercy. We are much like children learning to walk in that we fall often. Many of us can imagine a loving father who is always there to pick us up, to brush us off, to put us back on our feet, and to encourage us to keep going. This is a beautiful image of the Father’s love for us. Yet, God is more than a loving Father who treats us with love and mercy. Jesus told St. Faustina, “I am love and mercy itself; there is no human misery that could measure up to my mercy” (Diary, 14 September 1937). Jesus, who is love and mercy, tends to the garden of our heart.
As a compassionate father to us personally, Pope Francis speaks to our individual needs. As a compassionate father to the world, Pope Francis encourages us to think beyond ourselves as we recover from this pandemic. If we do not think beyond ourselves, “We may then be struck by an even worse virus, that of selfish indifference.” He goes so far as to warn against sacrificing the poor on the “altar of progress”. We are all united in that everyone of us has been affected. May we stay united as we recover together. As doctors and nurses care for those infected, as scientists search for a vaccine, as small businesses fight to stay afloat, as families and friends try to stay connected from a safe distance, and as the poor struggle to survive, may we leave no one behind and tend to one another with love and mercy.