Tacoma, WashingtonMarch 22, 2020 | The Fourth Sunday in Lent

Laetare Sunday in the Midst of a Pandemic

Is there any hope? This was the question asked by the Israelites, our ancestors in the faith, as they experienced aggressive economic and social disruption during the sixth century BC. Discouragement in the face of ineffective leaders – Isaiah calls them “dumb dogs” – and widespread greed and hoarding were the “bread” the people were forced to eat, leaving only bitterness in their mouths. Disruption leading to disorientation and confusion animating anxiety marked the unsettling rhythm of life.

Is there any hope? Here enters the prophet who speaks the Word of God to the people, first reminding them that their Creator has not forgotten them. Focused on their survival and meeting their immediate needs – the conservation of energy matched by fear of strangers – the prophet brings to consciousness the One whose “throne is heaven and whose footstool is the earth” (Isaiah 66:1). In effect, the prophet leads the people to remember that their future is bound up with their Creator and Liberator from oppression. This is the One who stands over inept leaders and greedy elites, whose regard is for “the humble and contrite in spirit” (Isaiah 66:2b). And, then, the prophet brings to memory what they may have forgotten in the midst of their anxiety: their Creator and Redeemer has brought life out of death in the past and will continue to do the same in their own day. What does the prophet say? “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her – that you may nurse and be satisfied from her consoling breasts” (Isaiah 66:10-11). Yes, there is hope – a hope grounded in God who works with and through the people and events of this world to bring consolation and renewed prosperity.

It was this acclamation – Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her – that was appointed as the refrain to be sung on the Fourth Sunday of Lent, commonly called Laetare Sunday, from the Latin text used in the Mass for close to 1,500 years: "Laetare Jerusalem: et conventum facite omnes qui diligitis eam.” At the midpoint of Lent, Laetare Sunday offers a glimmer of what is to come at Easter. Thus we find pink roses making their way into churches and homes; we find

rose or pale pink garments worn by liturgical leaders; we can even hear a brighter register on the organ – all of this intended to shift our view toward what is promised: the love of God disrupting the narrative of discouragement, anxiety, incompetence, and greed; the loving Presence of God leading us together – never by ourselves but together – in doing what we can to relieve the anxiety of family and friends and strangers, to share our food and drink and concern with those thrown down by this awful disruption we call a virus, to find ourselves at home in prayer with God, our loving Mother. What does the prophet say? “Can a woman forget her nursing child or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you, says the LORD” (Isaiah 49:15).

There will come a time when this pandemic will ease. But, then, one wonders: will a return to “normalcy” lead us to forget what has become so abundantly apparent: that our national and collective care for the most basic of human needs has been deplorable?

Healthcare providers are begging for protective clothing as bankers and trading houses receive enormous injections of cash. Pierce County school kitchens remain open to give lunch and breakfast to homeless children and children from families of the working poor. The governor has had to order landlords, both individuals and corporations, to refrain from evicting renters suddenly unemployed and behind in rent payments. As leaders in Chaplains on the Harbor, a diocesan ministry, indicate, the homeless do not have warm water and soap to wash their hands, access to healthcare, and sufficient shelter to stave off illness. We are compelled to ask: Why, in this wealthiest of nations, do basic human needs go unmet?

Is there any hope? The prophet Isaiah portrays God as a loving and attentive mother who cares for each and every one of her children. Might our keeping of Laetare Sunday in the home bring to mind God’s faithful and compassionate presence to this world and, at the same time, serve as the opportunity to renew our commitment to love our neighbor by promoting the healing and feeding ministry of Jesus to those most vulnerable among us?