Covid Deaths
One of the unpleasant features of the coronavirus is that when people do die of it, they tend to die in a more conscious state than is common nowadays. Generally people in hospitals and hospices are heavily sedated before they die, but people dying of this disease may be conscious – and conscious that they are struggling to breathe – until near the end. This is highly distressing for both patients and staff.
If the pandemic gives the nations of the world more of a horror of death, that would be a good thing. The sad reality is that many of these people are exchanging one horror for another: the horror of dying for the horror of hell. Furthermore, there are many guilty hands in the world that have assisted in the death of others through murder, abortion and euthanasia. It would be good if such people would see the reality of what they have done in putting others into eternity. Death is made a blessing to the righteous in that it ushers them into the presence of Christ, but in itself it is “the king of terrors” (Job 18:14).
DWBS
Covid and Prayer
The Covid-19 pandemic is a serious matter for every nation. Governments need to know how to handle it – in particular, what restrictions to impose on their people to restrain its spread. Yes, they can rely to some extent on scientific advice, but especially when so little is known about the virus, there is a limit on how effective such advice can be.
No doubt, God’s children always pray that He would direct their rulers, and especially at a time like this. Yet are national leaders asking for God’s blessing? The leaders of Australia and Jamaica are reported to have prayed in connection with this outbreak. But there is no sign, for instance, of the UK Prime Minister or of the Scottish First Minister either praying themselves or calling on others to pray. (Nor is there respect for the Sabbath in protecting it from policy announcements.) But how wonderful an answer Jehoshaphat received when, in a dire situation, he prayed, “We have no might . . . neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee” (2 Chr 20:12).
Protestant View
Mass in John Calvin’s Church
We are sorry to hear that the blasphemous Roman mass is due to be celebrated for the first time since the Reformation in the same church in Geneva where
John Calvin was minister. Providentially, this God-dishonouring event was cancelled because of the Coronavirus outbreak, after being originally scheduled to take place at the end of February. It has been postponed until 30 May 2020 but we hope it will be cancelled permanently. Out of keeping with Rome’s usual position on communion with members of other faiths, the local (Protestant) congregational authorities have assured Protestants that they will be welcome to participate in the “sacrament”.
Responding to protests against the mass, Dr Daniel Pilly, President of the Parish Council of St Pierre in Geneva, said that Geneva had rejected “the verbal excesses of Calvin and other Reformers about Roman Catholicism”. There is no doubt that Calvin and the other Reformers consistently denounced the soul-destroying doctrines and practices of the Roman Church in exceptionally vehement and vigorous terms. The real reasons why they used such language do not seem to be appreciated by many professed Protestants in Europe today who, thankfully, are not faced with the full onslaught of the persecuting power of Papal Rome as the original Protestants were. We agree with Calvin over against the compromising spirit of modern Protestantism regarding the true nature of Romanism and wholeheartedly agree with his remarks on 2 Thessalonians 2:11:
“For as God enlightens us inwardly by His Spirit, that His doctrine may be efficacious in us, and opens our eyes and hearts, that it may make its way thither, so by a righteous judgement He delivers over to a reprobate mind (Rom 1:28) those whom He has appointed to destruction, that with closed eyes and a senseless mind, they may, as if bewitched, deliver themselves over to Satan and his ministers to be deceived. And assuredly we have a notable specimen of this in the Papacy. No words can express how monstrous a sink of errors there is there, how gross and shameful an absurdity of superstitions there is, and what delusions at variance with common sense. None that have even a moderate taste of sound doctrine, can think of such monstrous things without the greatest horror.”
AWM