-
Several years ago, I went to Portugal for the First Communion of my buddy’s son. While I was there, I had the good fortune of visiting Fatima — where, in 1918, the Blessed Mother appeared to three shepherd children: Lucia, her cousin Jacinta and her brother Francisco. Lucia would later become a Carmelite nun in Coimbra. Francisco died a year after the apparitions and his sister shortly thereafter. The latter two have since been canonized and Lucia’s cause for canonization is gaining momentum. I was awestruck as I watched pilgrims arrive at the shrine after walking there on foot — some, making the final approach on their knees for almost one thousand feet. Most of these pilgrims are desperate people who are either pleading with Mary to assist them in their need or, having experienced a miracle, are there to thank the Mother of God for favors received.
As I was discussing my impressions with my Portuguese friends, one of them asked me if I believed in miracles. “Well,” I said, “if I did not, I would never be a priest.”
The truth is, because we do believe in miracles, we, Catholics, are still apt to approach the Blessed Mother or other saints — wherever we find ourselves in life, to plead our cause before the throne of Christ Jesus.
Most of us associate miracles with healings — such as someone who was blind and now sees; someone who was deaf and now hears; someone who was plagued with a terminal illness but is now healthy.
The coronavirus pandemic has changed our lives dramatically; yet, we have adapted to wearing masks, socially distancing ourselves from others, washing our hands frequently, restricting our lifestyles in a way that we will not infect others or be infected by others. While the pandemic has been bothersome and has caused much suffering, death and inconvenience, the miracle is that most people who have contracted the illness globally have survived. As of August 13, 20.6M people contracted COVID-19 worldwide. Of these, 749K have died while 12.8M have recovered. If we break down the numbers even more, focusing on particular countries, we find that here, in the United States, there have been 5.29M confirmed cases of the coronavirus, 168K of these have died and 2.68M have recovered. In Brazil, 3.17M have contracted COVID-19, 104K have died but 2.3M have recovered. In India, 2.4M have had the coronavirus. Over 47K have died, while 1.7M have survived. In South Africa, 569K got COVID-19, 11K have died and 432K have survived.
The School of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University reports that the coronavirus, like the flu, are both respiratory illnesses caused by different viruses. There is a yearly vaccine for the flu but, at present, in the United States vaccines for the coronavirus are still being developed and tested. Given the numbers, the mysterious nature of the virus and the severity of symptoms that the COVID illness has had on the elderly, on those with compromised immune systems and even on seemingly healthy individuals, it would seem that it is a miracle that anyone has recovered from the coronavirus at all. When science cannot explain why somebody has recovered from a disease, people of faith usually dub these “miracles.”
We have been told by infectious disease specialists that it is possible we will have a COVID vaccine by the end of this year; so 2021 looks promising. This feat of technology is a grace because had God not given these scientists, technicians and group trial volunteers the incentive to take on this quest; we’d find ourselves stuck in the ebb and flow of this pandemic indefinitely.
The history of our salvation is the story of God’s intervention in our lives.Whenever God chooses to intervene first and foremost through Christ, then, through the vessel of one or more of his saints, such as Our Lady of Fatima, it’s a miracle!
Yes, God continues to enter the life of his people. He has not abandoned us nor does he intend to leave us to fend for ourselves. God is good, all the time. This same God gives me the faith to believe in miracles or I would not be a priest. Evidently, he does the same to you or you would not bother to read this column or choose to be Church.
Father Comandini is managing editor of “The Catholic Spirit.”