One Sunday morning, a mother knocks on her son’s bedroom door and tells him it’s time to get up and go to church.

“I’m not going to church this morning,” the son says.

“You gotta get up and go to church,” says mother.

“No, I’m not,” says the son.”Give me two good reasons why I have to go.” 

The mother patiently replies, “Number one, you’re 55 years old. And number two, you’re the pastor!”

Signs of life after Covid 19 restrictions include opening of churches and the resumption of worship. Social distancing is still mandated, and attendance is limited to a fraction of capacity.

To ease us back into the full life of grace the church offers, veteran Catholic journalist Gerald Korson presents “A seven-step guide for attending Mass after lockdown” (6/26/2020), which can be adapted to Christian worship in general. Here is an abbreviated version.

Step 1. Go to Mass [Service] anyway. [Whatever way you experience the Body of Christ and the presence of Christ’s love in your worship services, take advantage of the opportunity to return to church.]

Korson puts it this way: If you normally attend Mass [Service] only because it’s an obligation, then you’re missing out. In the Mass [Service], you can receive the Eucharist, the body and blood of Christ, with your fellow believers. There is no greater expression of the Body of Christ, the Communion of Saints. It’s a privilege not to be taken lightly…

Step 2. Follow directions. Your local parish might require you enter through particular doors, wear a facemask, use hand sanitizer, or avoid congregating before and after Mass [Service]. You might find that ushers will escort you to your seats…

There might be no congregational singing, or instrumental music only. Don’t groan or roll your eyes. …You’re used to being directed to a table at restaurants, and you’ll practice similar social-distancing measures in any public building.

Step 3. Remember the collection. The pandemic and lockdown have hit churches hard. Even parishes that offer electronic giving options receive most of their weekly contributions through the collection basket. …it’s time to catch up with your parish giving. In fact, consider putting in a little extra to help support the parish’s mission.

Step 4. Avoid judging. Attendance might be smaller than you expect. You might notice some regulars missing. Don’t assume they have grown lazy or lukewarm. Those who aren’t at Mass [Service] might have legitimate reasons. Pray for them.

Step 5. Invite others to return. By the same token, when you meet or speak with other Catholics [Christians] afterward, encourage them to return to Mass [Service]. Express joy that you’ve been able to do so yourself. You might help some overcome their fears that way. 

Step 6. Get back to the box. Confession for the churches that have it. Let’s all thank God for the grace and forgiveness he offers us through the sacrament of penance [and the sacrifice of the Cross].

Step 7. Gradually resume parish life. If all goes well, things should return to normal with time. Watch for service opportunities to open up further as parish ministries resume.

All of the above are important considerations, but one bears repeating: avoid judging and be inviting! We are the church, and the Body of Christ on earth needs us. 

There is an ancient Asian custom of “Tea Ceremony” where two people gather, reverently greet one another in silence and then one pours the tea ever so slowly as if to drink in each other’s spirit first. Then they quietly enter conversation. ​There was once a student seeking wisdom from a master. They sat down, bowed, and the master started the tea ceremony; he slowly mixed the tea, letting it draw, then slowly started pouring the tea into the cup. ​As he did so, the cup filled to the brim and started to overflow. The student was disturbed and looked at the master; anxiously waiting for the master to stop pouring but he continued to pour. He poured, overflowing the cup, now over the saucer, and spilling over onto the table. ​The student couldn’t take it anymore and eventually said, “Master, the cup is full. It cannot take any more tea.” The master put down the teapot and looked at the student and said, “So too are you. And until you empty yourself you can receive no wisdom.”​Too often in life we are like the student in this story and lack the perception of the master. Instead of the tranquil-it-tea we should be enjoying, we find ourselves in the idiomatic tempest in a teacup. We exaggerate the moment.​Imagine having tea with Jesus. “If only I were holier,” you think. There is so much you would ask of Jesus in the encounter, if only you were holier. And that is characteristic of our daily lives – there are so many ways we could be like Jesus in this world, if only we were holier.​Picture Jesus in a boat with the disciples. A storm is raging, and the boat is already being swamped. There is much agitation, but Jesus is sleeping on a cushion. “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” they ask as they awaken him.​“Peace! Be still!” Jesus says. (Mark 4:35-41). “Have you still no faith?” he asks them. “Why were you afraid?” Jesus accepted them and rescued them just as they were. There was no need for their fear; Jesus was near.​Our call to discipleship does not depend on our personal sanctity. Jesus worked with sinners like Peter. God worked with sinners like King David. God accepts us as we are. After all, we are thrust into life’s situations daily in our families, at work or in the community just as we are.​In the song “Just as I am” we come to Jesus with our doubts, our conflicts, our fears. We ask Jesus to heal our minds, restore our sight, pardon and relieve us. We come just as we are. We will find “Sight, riches, healing of the mind” in Jesus.​As Christians we are called to live in the peace of Christ. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27).​“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:4-7).

In a pastoral scene in England a tourist witnesses a shepherd trying to gather his sheep as a storm approaches. The storm breaks overhead; he stands tall in their midst and continues to call out to them.​When life’s storms surround us, we call out to Jesus on the Cross. He continues to stretch out his arms to shelter us. “Do not be afraid, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1).​Constantine had a vision of a cross and was instructed, “Conquer by this sign.” He spread Christianity throughout the Holy Roman Empire.​Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. (Numbers 21:8-9). To this day this symbol of healing appears as the caduceus in the medical profession.​The Carthusian monks and nuns have never changed their way of life. Founded by St Bruno over a thousand years ago, they remain faithful to the Christian way of life: “The cross remains constant while the world turns.”​In 1998, when Pope John Paul II’s health began to seriously deteriorate, Cardinal Ratzinger described the Pope saying, “The pain is written on his face. His figure is bent, and he needs to support himself on his pastoral staff. He leans on the cross.” ​A universal Christian symbol, the cross is a sign of hope. We begin our prayers with the sign of the Cross. We wear the cross on chains about our necks, put it on our cars and on top of our churches. We are marked with the cross at Baptism, and on Ash Wednesday.​And every Good Friday we gather about the Cross of Calvary and ponder the mysteries of the great sacrifice that restores heaven to us and enables us to be daughters and sons of God.​The Knights of Columbus in Knightline Vol.38, No.6, April 9, 2020, tells us:From the cross on Calvary hill Jesus spoke seven times, the “seven last words” of Christ. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:24). Our God forgives our ignorance!​“Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:43). What wonderful hope we have if we but turn to Jesus!​“Woman, behold your son … Behold, your mother.” (John 19:26-27). Mary, who stays with Jesus throughout his dying, now becomes our Mother and the Mother of the disciples and the Church.​“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27). The humanity of Jesus cries out through the pain and suffering. He is one of us!​Jesus, feeling every bit of human pain and suffering, cries out his sense of abandonment.​“I thirst.” (John 19:28). “It is finished.” (John 19:30). The mission of our salvation completed, Jesus gives up his spirit.​When we are afraid, when we face illness or death, we turn to the Cross for comfort. “Do not be afraid – I am with you! I am your God – let nothing terrify you! I will make you strong and help you; I will protect you and save you.” (Isaiah 41:10, Good News Bible).​Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit!