Objective Data: Coronavirus Scare An Intentional Media Effort to Cause Panic

In your humble blogger’s opinion, Miss Barnhardt is absolutely right about this.  We are all being gaslighted about this “pandemic”, which is destined to fade away with the spring and summer sunshine, as flu always does.  I read today that some World Health Organization functionary claimed this virus is somehow different and will not fade out as the weather warms, based on no evidence at all.  Remember, this is the same W.H.O. that lambasted President Trump for his early action to first screen (January 17) and then halt completely (January 31) travelers into the USA from China, which even some of Trump’s worst political enemies are finally beginning to admit was a very smart move that has spared the US from much grief at this stage of the situation.

Am I saying don’t be careful? Of course I’m not. We should all take care EVERY FLU SEASON to keep our hands clean, avoid as much as possible touching surfaces that are likely full of contagions, try not to touch our faces, eyes and mouth, especially when out in the world, stay home when we are sick, and avoid doing dumb things like drinking from a common chalice at our neighborhood Novus Ordo Mass, and shaking hands with others who are maybe not as careful as we are about avoiding infection, as part of the superfluous and (to me) irritating “sign of peace.”

And please don’t sing the tired old song that the holy chalice and the Precious Blood can’t carry germs, because that’s absurd on its face.  The chalice is just a metal vessel; it’s consecrated, not magically protected from carrying microbes. The Sacred Species retain ALL of their worldly characteristics—that is, their “accidents”, in Thomistic language—even after their “substance” becomes the body, blood, soul and divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. This latter point is basic Catholic theology, not very effectively taught these days.  And no, the US CDC did NOT run any definitive study on possible infection of the Communion chalice, as is claimed in some social media posts I have seen. While opining that the overall risk of getting sick from germs picked up from Communion is small, the CDC acknowledges that it is possible, and warns those especially susceptible to flu and flu-like conditions (such as Covid19) to exercise caution. Go to their website and look for yourself.

The bottom line is, if you want/need to be careful, avoid the chalice. In fact, to be safest you should avoid Communion altogether.  Contrary to what most Novus Ordoists believe, receiving the Eucharist is not the primary purpose of going to Mass. Participating in the propitiatory sacrifice of thanksgiving to God is the primary purpose.  Reception of the Holy Eucharist is a marvelous thing, but it’s secondary to the Sacrifice itself, and it’s perfectly OK to skip it for good reason—such as to avoid sickness, or if you happen not to be in a state of grace. That’s another basic point many seem to have forgotten or never learned, as darned near everyone troops up front for Communion every week, while maybe two percent of them have seen the inside of a confessional in the past year.  But hey, who am I to judge, right? Maybe everyone else is just way more holy than I am, with my need for weekly confession and all.

Everyone, be smart, use the brain God gave you, and don’t swallow the media’s attempt to cause global panic. That plays right into the Enemy’s hands.

God save the Church.