Love (of Neighbor) in a Time of Pandemic

Jesus boils the whole law and prophets down to two commandments, so I thought I’d do the same with all the readings for this Sunday – break them down, add some prayer, and reduce them to their essence. It’s like making jam – cut up the fruit, add sugar, and boil it down. It’s a simple process, but as I’ve learned the hard way through mishaps and misadventures, jam that’s runny or too sweet, simple isn’t necessarily easy.

So, here goes: In our First Reading, the commandment from Exodus is to refrain from oppressing immigrants, widows, orphans, and people living with poverty. In other words, don’t hurt the vulnerable people in your midst because God is on their side. In the Second Reading, the community at Thessalonica is commended for imitating Christ and for becoming “a model for all believers.” And in the Gospel, Jesus says that everything comes down to two things: love God with your heart, soul, and mind and love your neighbor as yourself. So, to cook it all down, love God and other people, not only by not hurting the vulnerable, but by imitating Christ, who loves everyone wholeheartedly.

When I reduce it down this way, it seems kind of simple to put into practice. In the face of great heartbreak and hardship – and there’s a lot of both going around these days – how do I respond? Direct service can help a lot of people, advocacy can get at the root of injustice, and voting in this election can go a long way. I also find that simply being present to another person is a deeply loving thing to do. Presence, service, advocacy – all good ways to imitate Christ, not harm others, and love God and neighbor. However, this seems too easy, and simple doesn’t always mean easy.

Setting it up this way creates a me/them, helper/recipient kind of dynamic, and Scripture doesn’t create that dichotomy. In fact, each reading redirects back to its audience and invites self-reflection. Why do we not oppress immigrants and refugees? Because “you were once aliens yourselves.” Why did the community at Thessalonica imitate Christ? Because it was modeled to them first. And how do we love our neighbors? By loving them as ourselves, by entering into mutual relationships rather than othering people. To “other” someone is to treat them as if they were different from me, really, to treat them as less than me. Jesus doesn’t love people by othering them. He enters into relationships as one with them and calls me to do the same. If I really love my neighbors, I acknowledge our shared humanity and even appreciate our differences. The term “neighbor” implies a mutuality in our relationship. It’s not me-and-them, but us, loving each other.

In a couple of my various communities, we’ve been talking about the poverty that this pandemic has evoked, not just economic poverty but social and spiritual as well. We have mostly been talking about it through the lens of other people. Across all ages and circumstances, people are suffering because of the isolation of the pandemic, and some seem to be giving up as they fall into real social distancing rather than physical distancing or distanced socializing. As we talked, I thought about how lonely and disconnected I have sometimes felt over this time. And then someone else gave voice to that experience too. It’s not just that other people are struggling, but we’re all struggling. Yes, some have it worse than others. People with lower incomes have less access to resources like healthcare. It’s clear that communities of color are experiencing the brunt of the virus more than white people. But rather than othering, allowing a condescending helper/needy kind of dynamic, can I tap into my own struggles and see how each of us is suffering? Rather than separating myself, can I allow our shared suffering to amplify my empathy and compassion, knowing that as I help others, I’m in need as well?

This pandemic has taken a lot away from us. How do we refrain from allowing our lack to oppress other people? How do we imitate Christ by loving God and loving our neighbor as ourselves? As the pandemic wears on and on, our feelings of magnanimity might be a little diminished. Pandemic fatigue is a new term that describes a very real thing that’s happening. Maybe now more than ever we need to be in mutually caring relationships with our neighbors. I honestly don’t know how we resolve the disconnection brought by the pandemic, but each tiny action that builds relationship goes a long way to ease the ache of loneliness. It’s not easy, but the essence of God’s call is simple: draw near each other and imitate Christ by loving God and our neighbors with our whole hearts.

By Sister Leslie Keener, CDP

Sister Leslie Keener, CDP is the director of God Space, a community-building spirituality ministry in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. She’s a Sister of Divine Providence with a Masters in Ministry and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction and Retreats from Creighton University. She directs retreats, meets with people for spiritual direction, and serves as the vocation director for her community. She also serves on the Coordinating Council of Spiritual Directors International. She enjoys music, dancing, and meaningful conversations.