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Viewpoint
Learning to live with compassion
As Covid-19 restrictions ease, Adrian Lyons suggests we still need to take responsibility for other people’s welfare
IN England and Northern Ireland – and soon in the other nations of the UK – there are no longer any legal restrictions on our behaviour in relation to reducing the spread of Covid-19.
Over recent weeks at Colchester Citadel mask wearing has gradually reduced, leaving the minority who are still wearing masks standing out from the crowd. I know that this reduction in mask-wearing leads to some members of the congregation feeling uncomfortable about attending. For others, it may even have stopped them attending.
Our band continues to use bell covers. One member informed me that in his contesting band they do not use bell covers because they affect the sound. My response was to ask how many members of his contesting band had caught Covid-19, to which the answer was nine.
One of the reasons Salvation Army soldiers abstain from consuming alcohol is that, even if we personally might not experience any ill effects if we were to drink, we stand alongside those who do experience them. Therefore, voluntarily curtailing our own freedoms for the benefit of others should not be an alien concept to those who have signed the Soldier’s Covenant.
While the symptoms of the Omicron variant seem mild for most, there are people in our congregations who are at particular risk from catching coronavirus. This is true for older people or those who have medical conditions. Those who are self-employed – for whom each day off work is a day without income – also have to deal with the financial consequences of catching Covid-19. We owe all these people a duty of care.
It concerns me that discussions about Covid-19 precautions lump together different elements. For example, on the day that the government announced the ending of all legal restrictions in England, BBC News recorded vox pops on the streets of London. One interviewee said she welcomed the ending of restrictions because ‘we’ve been in lockdown too long’. She seemed unaware that she was out in the street and therefore, by definition, not locked down.
Similarly, questions about the allocation of financial resources are political, so the upcoming removal of universally free testing in England is open to political debate. Having said that, while it is not legally mandated, there remains a recommendation to self-test before attending an indoor event with other people. For some members of our congregations the main opportunity during their week to mix indoors with people from outside their house may be attending a Sunday meeting. If they follow the advice to self-test, that will mean attending meetings carries a financial cost. These are areas over which the individual cannot make a choice.
On the day of the announcement, Professor Christina Pagel, director of University College London’s clinical operational research unit, commented: ‘If we are to add a new, serious disease that is far more infectious than flu to our population, with no adaptations to indoor environments or way of life, then we must expect frequent reinfections, more ill health and many more deaths each year.’
During the press conference that followed on from the prime minister’s announcement, England’s chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, warned that the country still has ‘high rates of Omicron’ – with between 1 in 20 and 1 in 25 people estimated to be infected at the time – and that coronavirus remains ‘a very prominent infection’.
‘As we look at the next weeks,’ he said, ‘I would urge people in terms of public health advice to still self-isolate.’ He went on to say that ‘maximising ventilation, hand washing and using face masks in enclosed spaces with large numbers of people when there are significant numbers of cases remain important’.
In 1 Corinthians 10:23, Paul writes: ‘“I have the right to do anything,” you say – but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”– but not everything is constructive.’ This verse seems particularly relevant. As Christians we are called to care for others, so the least we can do, if we know we have Covid-19, is not to put others at risk but rather choose to self-isolate. We should also ventilate our halls and wear face masks.
