ROME: A leading church cardinal is telling Catholics to reflect upon the coronavirus and that it’s somehow connected to society's rebellion against God and "even within the Church, a paganism which worships nature and the earth."
"There are those within the Church who refer to the earth as our mother, as if we came from the earth, and the earth is our salvation.”
Society is not only "indifferent" to God, but "openly rebellious" toward Him and the created order, says Burke.
Burke elaborates:
"Oftentimes, when we find ourselves in great suffering and even facing death, we ask: 'Where is God?' But the real question is: 'Where are we?'"
We ask: 'Where is God?' But the real question is: 'Where are we?'
Many believe Cdl. Burke's comments asking Catholics to reflect on the correlation between this rebellion and the coronavirus was entirely justified.
Burke emphasizes that essential need of "prayer, devotions and worship, above all, confession and the Holy Mass" for us "to remain healthy and strong spiritually, and for us to seek God's help in a time of great danger for all."
"Therefore, we cannot simply accept the determinations of secular governments, which would treat the worship of God in the same manner as going to a restaurant or to an athletic contest," he warns, explaining: "Otherwise, the people who already suffer so much from the results of the pestilence are deprived of those objective encounters with God who is in our midst to restore health and peace."
There are those within the Church who refer to the earth as our mother, as if we came from the earth, and the earth is our salvation.
After all, the state allows people to visit the supermarket and the pharmacy while observing the precautions of social distancing and the use of disinfectants, Burke reasons, acknowledging that "it is a fundamental act of charity to use every prudent means to avoid contracting or spreading the coronavirus."
He writes:
Just as we are able to purchase food and medicine, while taking care not to spread the coronavirus in the process, so also we must be able to pray in our churches and chapels, receive the sacraments, and engage in acts of public prayer and devotion, so that we know God's closeness to us and remain close to Him, fittingly calling upon His help. Without the help of God, we are indeed lost.
So the message is this: Paganism may be responsible for the virus and we are nothing without God.
In an effort to eliminate any confusion, which of the possible God choices is he referring to?
Agdistis or Angdistis
Ah Puch
Ahura Mazda
Alberich
Allah
Amaterasu
An
Anansi
Anat
Andvari
Anshar
Anu
Aphrodite
Apollo
Apsu
Ares
Artemis
Asclepius
Athena
Athirat
Athtart
Atlas
Baal
Ba Xian
Bacchus
Balder
Bast
Bellona
Bergelmir
Bes
Bixia Yuanjin
Bragi
Brahma
Brigit
Camaxtli
Ceres
Ceridwen
Cernunnos
Chac
Chalchiuhtlicue
Charun
Chemosh
Cheng-huang
Cybele
Dagon
Damkina (Dumkina)
Davlin
Dawn
Demeter
Diana
Di Cang
Dionysus
Ea
El
Enki
Enlil
Eos
Epona
Ereskigal
Farbauti
Fenrir
Forseti
Fortuna
Freya
Freyr
Frigg
Gaia
Ganesha
Ganga
Garuda
Gauri
Geb
Geong Si
Guanyin
Hades
Hanuman
Hathor
Hecate (Hekate)
Helios
Heng-o (Chang-o)
Hephaestus
Hera
Hermes
Hestia
Hod
Hoderi
Hoori
Horus
Hotei
Huitzilopochtli
Hsi-Wang-Mu
Hygeia
Inanna
Inti
Iris
Ishtar
Isis
Ixtab
Izanaki
Izanami
Jesus
Juno
Jupiter
Juturna
Kagutsuchi
Kartikeya
Khepri
Ki
Kingu
Kinich Ahau
Kishar
Krishna
Kuan-yin
Kukulcan
Kvasir
Lakshmi
Leto
Liza
Loki
Lugh
Luna
Magna Mater
Maia
Marduk
Mars
Mazu
Medb
Mercury
Mimir
Minerva
Mithras
Morrigan
Mot
Mummu
Muses
Nammu
Nanna
Nanna (Norse)
Nanse
Neith
Nemesis
Nephthys
Neptune
Nergal
Ninazu
Ninhurzag
Nintu
Ninurta
Njord
Nugua
Nut
Odin
Ohkuninushi
Ohyamatsumi
Orgelmir
Osiris
Ostara
Pan
Parvati
Phaethon
Phoebe
Phoebus Apollo
Pilumnus
Poseidon
Quetzalcoatl
Rama
Re
Rhea
Sabazius
Sarasvati
Selene
Shiva
Seshat
Seti (Set)
Shamash
Shapsu
Shen Yi
Shiva
Shu
Si-Wang-Mu
Sin
Sirona
Sol
Surya
Susanoh
Tawaret
Tefnut
Tezcatlipoca
Thanatos
Thor
Thoth
Tiamat
Tlaloc
Tianhou
Tonatiuh
Toyo-Uke-Bime
Tyche
Tyr
Utu
Uzume
Vediovis
Venus
Vesta
Vishnu
Volturnus
Vulcan
Xipe
Xi Wang-mu
Xochipilli
Xochiquetzal
Yam
Yarikh
Yhwh
Ymir
Yu-huang
Yum Kimil
Zeus
Faith can move mountains.
With faith anything is possible, okay, but faith in what, in who?
If they mean faith in your own abilities, in the person you want to become, we would agree.
But sermons on faith usually have little to do with self empowerment.
We find it troubling that people actually believe they are nothing without some higher power pulling the strings.
It's amazing how people are willing to believe in something invisible but not in the things that are right in front of them.
The power of nature is all around, we can see it, touch it and learn from it.
But many choose to ignore it and believe in the traditions of dogma.
As Pagans we believe in self empowerment, we are responsible for our own lives, we are at the helm, captains of our own journey, surrendering our power to no one.
We are told to trust the unseen, have absolute faith and hand over all personal power because God is in control of everything.
If we surrender and allow God to work his miracles, everything
will be just fine.
Having faith in things unproven can be a slippery slope, it's pretending to know things you just don't know.
Telling us that a higher power is in complete control is difficult to understand, where does that leave us?
How do we grow or get stronger if we think someone or something is to to carry us every time we experience life's struggles?
There were only one set of footprints in the sand, in the famous poem we are told, "During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."
We don't need to be carried, we need to learn our strengths and purpose, gain confidence and even though there will be people during your lifetime that will assist and befriend you, those footprints in the sand are yours and yours alone.
The footprints are yours because you decided to get up and walk, because you believe in yourself.
