It is no doubt the year 2020 will be remembered as one of the strangest and perhaps the most challenging in recent history.
Across the world, it has been a year plagued with tragedy, crises and trauma.
For those of us here in Australia, it has been somewhat crises after crises, and just (literally) as we had come out of the fires, the COVID-19 pandemic crept in (the first patient was diagnosed on 25 January).
In this situation of crises – each one is different and brings varied effects and consequences – borders across the globe have been closed, hundreds of thousands have lost their jobs and we have all been forced to isolate from each other.
Since that point, more than 6900 people have reported and more than 300 people in Australia have died. At the time of going to print, nine of those were from Western Australia.
For Catholics, perhaps of the most difficult consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic has been the closure of Churches and places of worship. We have been prevented from coming together to share in the sacraments which is at the heart of lives as a people searching for Christ and the meaning of his message.
Perth’s own Archbishop Timothy Costelloe spoke about these extraordinary circumstances in two Pastoral Letters in early March.
“Even though we cannot gather at the moment to celebrate Mass together we are not deprived of the presence of the Lord,” Archbishop Costelloe explained, in his letter of 19 March.
“We know that he is with us, closer to us than we are to ourselves. We know that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses (cf. Hebrews 12:1), who always accompany us on our journey of faith. Mary, the Mother of God, walks with us in company with the saints who never stop praying with us and for us. God continues to send his angels to protect us and guide us. The Church, especially though, not only through its ordained ministers, continues to be the Lord’s chosen instrument through which he remains present among us as our Good Shepherd.”
The Archbishop continued by talking about the importance of the Eucharist.
“The Eucharist is the greatest gift we have. Our Catholic faith is also very rich in its many other spiritual traditions. The first Catholics in Australia, deprived of the Mass, gathered around the Blessed Sacrament, left by a priest who was unable to remain in the colony in what is now Sydney. In the presence of their Eucharistic Lord, the people entrusted themselves to Christ at a time of great uncertainty. With this in mind I have asked our priests to keep our churches open for private prayer where possible, and to organise times of Eucharistic Adoration. As long as only small groups gather, and maintain a safe distance from each other, this will be an ongoing possibility for us and a source of strength and comfort for many.”
Across Perth, agencies and parishes worked to ensure congregations and friends were not along during the many weeks of lockdown.
Masses commenced being livestreamed at St Mary’s Cathedral weekly and then daily from the end of March via the Archdiocesan website and social media.
Cathedral Dean Fr Sean Fernandez said he was grateful such a service was able to be provided with the support of the Archdiocesan Communications Office and IT Office.
“Many people may be experiencing the inability to participate in Mass as a deprivation, even as a desolation which is testing their faith. This is perfectly understandable; we, Catholics, are a sacramental people and the Eucharist is at the heart of our faith,” Fr Sean said.
“It is important for the people to know that even though they can’t be physically present, the livestreaming of Mass is one way they participate in the prayer of the community,” he said.
Despite churches across the city being closed, the Centre for Faith Enrichment (CFE) remained operational in an online capacity, providing a unique opportunity for Catholics to use the quarantine time to build their faith through education and understanding.
“Now is the time to explore the wonderful richness of our Catholic tradition,” Dr Marco Ceccarelli, Director of CFE, said on 22 April.
“Despite the COVID-19 situation, we made a real effort to prioritise remaining operational, so that people could continue to receive faith formation.
“We want to offer people a variety of formation options that range from study of scripture, Church History, spirituality and other specific topics of interest, such as John Paul II’s Theology of the Body.”
In closing his Pastoral Letter of 24 March, Archbishop Costelloe drew on the experience of Jesus’ disciples.
“When the disciples of Jesus were overwhelmed by a storm which had overtaken them, Jesus came to them in the midst of the storm, encouraging them not to be afraid because he was with them. He reached out to Peter as he was sinking and lifted him up (cf. Matthew 14:22-33). The Lord is with us in this present storm which is engulfing us and he is encouraging us, too, not to be afraid. He has not deserted us. Rather he is calling us to discover him in the midst of this crisis and allow him to lift us up and lead us safely to shore.”
“The Lord also reminds us that, on the cross, he gave us his mother, Mary, to be our mother. In Australia we turn to her as the Help of Christians. May she come to help us now with her prayers for us and with her presence among us,” Archbishop Costelloe concluded.
From pages 8 to 9 of Issue 25: Crises and Trauma of The Record Magazine