Religious Ethiests, Revd Dr. Valson

and within the limitations of being human. Jesus was empowered by the Spirit of God who descended on him at the Jordan. The same Spirit is granted to us to act with power within the limitations imposed by Covid-19. While these limitations operate, God has given us other resources. While physical closeness is blocked we have many alternate ways of making contact with those around and make a difference to the world around.

During the grieving phase we made an offering to God: an offering of painful thoughts, emotions and behaviour. What is offered is transformed and healed by God. Once we accept the losses, we are invited to make another offering: the offering of what is left with us. We have two good eyes to look at the world beyond the two meters distance with the compassion of Jesus. We need to offer our eyes to God for them to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Full of the Holy Spirit, we may look at those in pain with the same compassion with which Jesus looked at and healed people in pain. The world will then see in our eyes the compassion of God. We have two good ears to listen to what the world is communicating to us. Spirit filled listening to the agonies of the world has enormous healing power. We also are left with our voice. We may offer our speech to God for it to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that we may modulate our voice and speak with the compassion of Jesus. Our brains are intact for us to think and come up with ideas to solve problems: our own problems and those around us. Spirit filled thinking is a powerful resource in solving problems, big and small. We have a lot more intangible dimensions of our personality, which Covid has not taken away. When they are offered to God, they are transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. The special charismata for any ministry come from God. When the Holy Spirit descends on the church in the Covid and post-Covid era, we are granted special charismata to minister to people suffering in this new era. In the power of the Holy Spirit what is left is enough and more. Just as five loaves of bread and two fish were more than enough for five thousand to fill their stomachs, the compassionate thoughts, eyes, ears words, and deeds in the power of the Holy Spirit are more than enough to witnessto the power of God unto salvation.

4 From Domination to Relationship

An important part of coping with Covid-19 is to ask deeper questions about the way the Homo sapiens have been relating to mother Earth and it’s other inhabitants. Our life style and ways of relating are to be reviewed in the light of the model displayed by God while he lived on earth in human form. With advancements in science and technology human potential to dominate the earth and our fellow creatures became more pronounced. Science and technology became an added tool of exploitation for the Western countries over the Asian, African and South American countries. Covid-19 is a powerful reminder to the moderns that there are limits to science and technology. Nature is capable of retaliating when we abuse science for domination over the earth and its inhabitants. Covid-19 is inviting humans to repent about the craze for domination and come back to a responsible relationship with mother Earth and our siblings on earth who arrived before humans came on the scene. The craving for dominion makes human blind. Human resources, particularly the resources of science and technology, have been abused for exploitation all through history. Those with superior technology have repeatedly utilized it to exploit those lower down in technological development. During the industrial revolution those who had access to the tools of science and technology used it to exploit the poor in each country. The same resources were used to establish colonial rule across the globe and exploit, oppress and dominate those they ruled over. The people were treated like slaves and the resources of these countries were plundered. Industrial revolution was a period of rapid scientific advancement as well as ruthless exploitation. The end of the colonial era did not mark the end of exploitation. In the post-colonial era globalization simply enabled the continuation of domination, exploitation and plundering through the multi-national corporations (MNCs). In this new era of globalization, the rulers of the developing countries are simply pawns in the hands of the MNCs. The rulers dance to the tune of the MNCs, yielding to policy decisions that facilitate continued exploitation of the people and the resources of the developing countries by the richer countries. The MNCs are like giant trees with their trunk in the first world and the network of roots in the developing countries to suck away their resources. In this era of globalization colonialism continues under a mask. The need of the globe is a new international economic order which ensures greater justice to less wealthy countries and those with lower levels of technological development. We are invited to cope with pandemics by shifting to an international economic order in which the richer countries stop domination and start respectful relationships with the rest of the world.

5 Conclusions

Significant loss, whether temporary or permanent lead to grief. Meaningful and healthy grieving enables us to say bye to what is lost and to reconstruct life in a new way. The strength to grieve is to be found in the company of God. Grief offered is grief transformed. Biding bye to what is lost enables us to be emotionally free from the pain associated with what is lost. With that newfound freedom we are liberated to realistically assess what we are left with and to deploy our resources to cope with the challenges of living. Covid-19 has not taken away everything from us. There is enough and more left with us to make life meaningful. Our new way of coping also demands that we look at ourselves from the perspective of the mandate given to us by God to relate and nurture and not dominate and abuse. A just international economic order and eco-friendly living helps us cope best and is the best bet againstfuture pandemics.

SPIRITUALITY OF VIRTUAL CHURCH Revd Dr. Ipe Joseph* Introducing the theme I narrated an experience. That was about the funeral of our Geevarghese Mathew Achen who received his home call while I was in US. I miserably missed that occasion but decided to watch the webcast live. The final service was coming to a close at Eraviperoor and all the clergy were biding good-bye by coming in a line and kissing his hand. While the senior clergy were doing it I found a place for myself in the line and kissed his hand. Obviously, I kissed the image in my smart phone. After the narration I sought the responses from my colleagues. My affirmation was that I got full satisfaction of bidding farewell to my intimate brother priest. Then we discussed as to how to use virtual technology in our parish ministry. Several creative and practical proposals were made. Every day, in the morning or in the evening at stipulated time the Vicar can give a 10 minute message focusing on the Word of God and relating to life situations. This message can be received in a link by parishioners, may be while they are getting ready to go to the office or driving back from work. Another idea was to streamline all worship services so that those who stay at home can participate in them. This will be helpful for the sick, bedridden and the physically handicapped. In many cities regular house visit is not possible at all because of the different time schedules of working hours of members. If the parish priest can make regular video On 16th May 2019, sixty Mar Thoma Clergy of North calls from his mobile the parishioners will be kept alive in American Diocese were meeting in Carmel Mar Thoma the fellowship. It may not be a substitute for house visit; it Centre, Atlanta under the leadership of the diocesan will be an effective alternative. One of the Achens shared bishop Rt. Rev. Dr. Isaac Mar Philoxenos Episcopa. This his experience as to how he conducted a youth meeting was the first clergy meeting at this newly acquired facility with the help of conference audio call technique. In the by the Diocese. The theme of the Conference was Virtual Atlanta meeting we arrived at many more creative Churches. Thirumeni had asked me to be the animator for possibilities of virtual techniques. However, no one the main session of this conference. thought that just after a year all our churches have to become completely virtual due to the attack of the

Corona virus! It will be good to examine whether or not the virtual Church is a viable way to gratify the need for the religious experience when we are in a situation like the present one, unable to meet as a community. The virtual techniques have undergone fast development in recent years. The simplest form of virtual techniques is our telephone call. We are tempted to think that the voice of our friend we receive in our telephone is the original voice, which emanates from his mouth. It is not so. The voice is converted to electrical pulses and transmitted through communication towers and reconverted to sound energy in the receiver’s telephone. Then came television and tele-evangelism along with it. Now the Internet has come in its multiform enabling us to have videophone, webcasting, streamlining and zooming. As we know, many forms of social media like e-mail face book, you tube and twitter emerged with the help of Internet. During the lockdown period we have been participating in worship and Holy Communion services streamlined from Poolatheen every Sunday and from Diocesan Centres on Fridays. Now it is time to think about the efficacy and advantages of these virtual experiences. The virtual Church demands much adjustments and changes in our attitude and understanding. As we do not see the participants physically, we need to recognize the value of images in equal dignity with the physical form. In virtuality we are applying our senses of sight and hearing but we are bereft of the sense of touch. So we are required to perceive reality without the sense of touch. Our mind has to provide this extra hormone to our experience to make it complete.

Our generation is addicted to watching news, movies and serials. We have no roles to play in watching these shows other than engaging our eyes, ears and mind into them. In the case of virtual Church, instead of watching we fully participate in them. There is an ocean of difference between simply watching and fully participating. Last three months, every Sunday worship services and Holy Communion services were steam lined from Poolatheen Chapel under the leadership of His Grace the Metropolitan. We were not just watching them but we