How The Pandemic Is Impacting Religious Awakening
By: Elikplim Zanthia
Tags: Christianity, Spiritual Growth, American History, Awakening, Religion

How The Pandemic Is Impacting Religious Awakening

Will the burgeoning revival be long-lasting? Will it be ephemeral? The answer is yes!

Photo by John Price on Unsplash

In the past weeks, I received a dozen or more emergency calls from my parishioners. A similar question runs through these anxiety calls: Pastor, will Jesus come soon? Let’s face the fact, life isn’t the same at the moment. There is a lot of unprecedented global phenomena following the influx of the coronavirus that are stirring the soul of everyone to seek answers.

To gain some perspective, we must first establish that there are a number of factors that alter how adherents of various faiths have recourse to their objects of worship; crisis is one. When unforeseen, cataclysmic catastrophes wreak havoc on humanity, elevated religious enthusiasm paves the path to survival.

In times of trouble, everyone needs help. In difficult times, when human life is threatened, seeking the presence of the supernatural is believed to restore hope and comfort. However, what unsettles Christendom in these uncertain times is, would Christ return during or after this pandemic? The answer is far-fetched. Hope, in times like these, seems to be the scarcest human commodity. Consequentially, the universality of the disease has caused professed Christians everywhere to search for Bible prophecies which address end time signs that will set the scene for the Second Advent of Christ Jesus. Unsure of what unfolds next, the invisible nature of coronavirus makes one wonder if the world is walking in gloomy procession to eternal ruin.

As Christianity seeks to understand the times in which we live, the frailty of human life, and the meaninglessness of life amidst the pandemic, atheists and deists also have a voice in the evolving deliberation. On the one hand, deists advance their position that, God created the universe, established its laws, and then disassociated himself from creation. They believe that the Bible is errant, hence to glean hope from it when in a quandary is a deflection of hope. To this end, deists reached the conclusion that God is not interested in human affairs, therefore there is no reason to fix faith in him. On the other hand, atheists dismiss belief in the existence of God. In the broadest, even narrower sense, atheists oust God in these crisis-discussions by their disbelief in the existence of deities. However, there is also a position asserting that atheists are swift to believe in God in times of crisis, that atheists “make deathbed conversions.” Though they argue to the contrary, it is human to seek help when one has limited resources to navigate an impending danger.

The rapidly intensifying coronavirus crisis, which is submerging human life and grinding much of faith to a standstill, has incited many to seek a deity.

The fear imposed by this disease which is unparalleled in the history of the universe, more or less aims to sweep humanity off from the face of the earth. Wherefore humanity, regardless of belief system or religious affiliation, yearns in desperation for a higher help. In Christendom, for instance, prayers are being called. We hear of an amazing amalgamated religious effort to provide care for quarantined communities, use of social media platforms to inspire hope, online programs to promulgate the gospel, are evidences of a widespread religious arousal.

More telling is the fact that as the world observes social distancing (which many argue that it should rather be called physical distancing) for fear of propinquity that might lead to contracting the virus, churches have launched tailored programs to meet the spiritual needs of their congregants. Conspicuously, I see a new wave of religious zeal burning everywhere. Flying on social media are comforting Scripture verses meant to encourage one another. A few that I chanced on include: Psalm 91; 2 Chronicles 7:14; John 16:33; Matthew 24; Luke 21. The popular Life.Church YouVersion Bible App prayer feature is another medium through which people are sharing daily prayer requests asking God to intervene to stop the spread of the virus, heal those who are infected and protect who are not. Few days ago, the new ad by YouVersion goes something like this:

“Stuck at home? Missing your friends? Meet together here! Invite them to join you in the Bible App.”

Families and individuals stream online church services from home to spice up their spiritual fervency. The New Testament way of worship and fellowship is brought back into the 21st century.

This infusion almost feels like we are living an altogether new life through the lens of New Testament worshipers.

This new experience, I believe, will mark another era of religious awakening in American Christian history. As cases spike sharply in America, making her epicenter of the virus in the world at the moment, I sense an increased interest in religion and a deep sense of conviction within her walls. More and more people are committing their lives to Christ. It is ok to say that the preponderance of the virus is demanding subservience from the religious: the daily repentance, heightened Bible study, more consistent devotion and prayer life as never before.