As of 27th March 2020
Mask, mask, mask... we find more people than ever walking wearing masks. And masks, toilet rolls, tissue papers, alcohol antiseptic solution have all disappeared from the stores, and many of the institutions who need them desperately are crying for help. In Japan, as far as the number of patients are concerned, the increasing pace seemed quite slow, but these several days, the number is increasing again, especially in Tokyo, and we are given stronger warnings. Due to the request from the government, all the schools, of course including the Sacred Heart Schools, were closed immediately at the end of February. In Japan, March is the month of Graduation Ceremonies, and many schools have cancelled it or held them in a smaller scale. Now the schools and teachers are thinking of how they can start the new school year in April without putting the pupils and students at the risk of contracting the virus. The postponement of Tokyo Olympic Games has just been announced and we find ourselves so relieved. In Tokyo and some other dioceses, we have not had Sunday Mass for more than a month.
As the number of the patients and the death toll rises all over the world, we are all feeling the littleness and weakness of humanity. We are praying the prayer on the RSCJ international website everyday, united in one heart with the suffering and grief of the people who have been threatened by the coronavirus so severely. May the Lord walk with all of us each day, give us the courage to choose the best to live in solidarity with the suffering, and guide us to be artisans of hope as we live in the midst of this crisis.