Christmas in the Pandemic

Silent night, holy night…
All is calm, all is bright

Round yon virgin mother and child, Sleep in heavenly sleep…

This Christmas carol captures the essence of the festival which is held to celebrate the Nativity of Baby Jesus who Christians believe was the Son of God born on earth to suffer and die to expiate the sins of all humankind.  Christians believe that  Jesus rose from the dead on Easter Sunday  Thus the Resurrection of Jesus after His torture and death on Good Friday gave birth to Christianity since Jesus committed no sin but died an innocent man paying the price for the sins of others.

This year the world faces the Covid -19 Pandemic and disease and death are no longer distant realities.  The most developed country in the world, the USA, has the highest number of deaths from Covid-19 and many Americans are petrified since they have led heedless lives upto now.

It is not just America for many countries in the world have a high incidence of Covid-19 disease and deaths. Countries like England have also had to impose a Lockdown and so has Australia.  India has a high death toll from the disease while countries in Europe, South America, Asia  and Africa are desperately trying to halt the epidemic.
So where does Christmas fit in this disease-ridden world?
“Christmas-a hope-filled celebration” is the banner headline on the front page of  “The Catholic Messenger” a Sri Lankan weekly paper. 
All over the world, Christmas, like Wesak, has been commercialised and shops, hotels and restaurants are decorated and ring up the cash register for special profits during the Season. 

However, shoppers are now wary of getting out and spending for the Pandemic spares no-one.  Health Guidelines from the World Health Organisation say to wear face masks, wash hands frequently and to use sanitiser.  Social Distancing of one metre has also been advocated.

One can only hope and pray that the vaccine for Covid-19 will help and that the majority of people will accept that life is short and consider reaching out to others with true compassion.

By Sirohmi Gunesekera

(Teacher, Attorney-at-Law and Researcher into Human Relations &The Family Unit)