Some thoughts about the Covid-19 pandemic
Here are a few observations from
Scripture to keep in mind as we seek to respond appropriately, that is, faithfully,
to the Coronavirus pandemic.
First, biblical law empowers
governing authorities to impose quarantines to protect public health. In ancient Israel, if someone developed a
suspicious spot on the skin, he was to be brought before the priest to be
examined. If the spot met certain
criteria, he was pronounced “clean” and allowed to go his way. If it met certain other criteria—we need not
go into the details here—he was “shut up” (quarantined) for seven days and
examined again. Depending on his
condition, he might be quarantined for another seven days (if there were no
changes in the spot), pronounced clean (if the spot was improving), or pronounced
unclean (if the spot was growing). In the
last case, he was to make his dwelling “outside the camp” for a prolonged,
perhaps permanent, quarantine (see Lev. 13:1-46).[1]
The point here is to demonstrate a
biblical precedent for a legally mandated quarantine or “social distancing.” Perhaps someone objects on the ground that officials
might abuse this power. True enough, just
as they might abuse any power entrusted to them. The question is not whether they might abuse
the power, but whether it is a legitimate power of government? In light of Leviticus 13, it seems that it
is. There are similar powers related to public
health implied in Leviticus 13:47-59 and 14:33-56.
Second, recklessness in the face
of danger is foolish.
The
prudent sees danger and hides himself,
but the simple go on and suffer for it
Proverbs 22:3
That is, when a wise man sees
danger, he takes measures to protect himself.
The greater the danger, the greater the measures. But as Billy Shakespeare might say, “Ay,
there’s the rub.” How great a danger
does the Coronavirus really pose? That’s
still an open question. We’re still in
the early stages of the outbreak and there are plenty of unknowns. Indications suggest an infection rate of 2.5
(how many people an infected person infects).
This rate might change as more data are collected. If the current number is accurate, it means
that Covid-19 is more infectious than MERS (0.8), influenza (1.5), and Ebola (2.0),
but less infectious than SARS (3.5), mumps (4.5), Rubella (6.0), smallpox (6.0),
and measles (16.0).
How deadly the virus is is also
unknown. It’s tempting to simply divide
the number of deaths (7,511) by the number of confirmed cases (188,630),[2]
in which case we get a rather high 3.9 percent mortality rate. But this is misleading for at least two
reasons. First, many of the confirmed
cases have only recently been diagnosed and undoubtedly some of them will die,
pushing the mortality rate higher.
Second, and more significantly, the number of confirmed cases is smaller
– probably much smaller – than the actual number of people infected, meaning the mortality rate is much lower.
More than 80 percent of confirmed
cases suffer only mild symptoms. It’s
fair to assume that many who have the virus and experience only mild symptoms
never get tested, so that the total number of cases is far higher than confirmed
cases, which in turn pushes the mortality rate down significantly. The swine flu provides an example. The CDC reported that through July of 2009
there were 43,677 confirmed cases in the U.S. They multiplied this number by 41 and 131 to
give a range of the likely number of cases, including those never tested and
confirmed (1.7 to 5.7 million).[3] If the same multipliers are used with the current
number of confirmed Coronavirus cases, it pushes the mortality rate down,
closer to the range for the flu. This is
good news. But of course, there are still
a lot of unknowns, hence what may seem like an excess of caution.
Of course, the nature of
the measures taken to “hide” oneself from danger depends on the nature of the
danger itself. “Hiding” oneself in the
present danger may mean nothing more than using the precautions recommended by
the CDC that we’ve all heard so much about recently (regular handwashing,
social distancing, etc.). These things
do not betray a lack of faith, but rather demonstrate prudence.
If the Coronavirus is not as
dangerous as we’ve been led to believe, then the measures the federal and state
governments have taken could actually do more harm than good. A great many people, I fear – most of them people
who can least afford it – will take a heavy financial hit. Those of us who are better off ought to help
bear their burden.
Third, the commandment to love our
neighbors (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 22:39), impels us to take the necessary precautions
to avoid infecting others, especially those who are most at risk – the elderly
and those who have other underlying health problems.
Fourth, let’s remember that God
has not given us “a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of
self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7). Let us be
faithful and faith filled. There
is no need to panic, ever. We belong to
the Lord. Let us, then, entrust ourselves to him.
[1] I understand
the separation of the person afflicted with leprosy as partly for holiness
reasons and partly for public health reasons.
The two are not mutually exclusive.
[2] https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
(accessed March 17, 2020)
Comments
But I have to ask, what do you think of the priest that gave the respirator to the younger patient and he himself died of the virus, since you are sharing your thoughts?
https://aab-edu.net/