Shadow of the Valley

Clara Sarrocco on Facing Imminent Death from Covid-19

Then they cried to the Lord in their need, and he rescued them from their distress. He sent forth his word to heal them and saved their life from the grave. (Psalm 107)

Science can record what happens to your body during an illness, but not what happens to your soul. When I first heard of Covid-19, I wondered why such a fuss was being made over a virus. That was before it became a pandemic. Mask-wearing was only suggested, so I went to the customer service department of a local bank without one. The transactions took about thirty minutes. A few days later, I had a cold, slight fever, and sore throat. Much later, I was to learn via a special-delivery letter from the bank that the clerk who had assisted me was ill with the coronavirus.

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Clara Sarrocco is the longtime secretary of The New York C. S. Lewis Society. She has taught classes on C. S. Lewis at the Institute for Religious Studies at St. Joseph's Seminary and is the president of the Long Island Chapter of University Faculty for Life. Her articles and reviews have appeared in numerous publications, including Touchstone, New Oxford Review, Gilbert, The Chesterton Review, St. Austin's Review, and The International Philosophical Quarterly.

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