FEAR, of
course, is one of our emotions. It is our natural
reaction when we perceive something to be a danger to us
or is so
incomprehensible that we feel helpless. Fear is one of
our natural and
instantaneous defense mechanisms.
Since we are
exposed to all kinds of things in this world,
we should not be surprised that fear comes to the surface
from time to
time. We can even fall into panic. But we should relieve
ourselves of
it as soon as we can.
We just have to
see to it that like the other emotions, we
do not let it stay simply in the level of raw,
unprocessed instincts
or that of a reflex reaction. It has to be processed and
has to be
dominated and directed by reason, and ultimately by our
faith in God.
Fear that is unguided by reason and faith would not be a
healthy one.
It would destroy us rather than defend us.
Amid the
spreading scare of the Corona virus that we are
having these days, we need to distinguish between a
healthy fear and
an unhealthy one, a normal fear and what may be described
as a
paranoia that is already a mental disorder.
A healthy fear
does not freeze us into inaction for long.
It would immediately lead us to study things well so that
we can act
with prudence, and as a consequence we can manage to have
peace of
mind and continue with our duties and responsibilities in
spite of the
ongoing danger or scare.
When our fear
is of the unhealthy type or, worse, has
degenerated into panic and paranoia, we continue to feel
helpless and
unable to function well as we should. It is kind of
obsessive that
leaves us feeling insecure and always in the state of
fright. It’s a
fear that finds no relief. It is actually an
over-reaction that does
not seek support from reason, and much less from faith.
It makes
things worse.
What we have to
do is to immediately go to God. He has the
answer to all the questions that we may even be unable to
ask. He has
all the solutions to all the problems that we may not
know we have. He
will enlighten us as to what concrete steps we can do. He
will
reassure us and will infuse courage to our weakening or
wavering
heart.
Let’s remember
what Christ said once: “In this world you
will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the
world.” (Jn
16,33) These reassuring and comforting words of Christ
had always been
repeated many times in the gospel. “Fear not, it is I,”
Christ said to
the disciples when they saw him walking on the water. (Jn
6,20)
From the Book
of Isaiah, we have these reassuring words
from God: “Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed,
for I am your
God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. I will
uphold you
with my righteous right hand.” (41,10) We really have no
reason to be
afraid of anything for long.
We just have to
be strong in our faith that in turn will
guide our reasoning and strengthen our emotions,
especially when we
encounter situations and problems that humanly speaking
seem to have
no more solutions. We have to expect this possibility to
take place
and we should just abandon ourselves in the wise and
omnipotent
providence of God.
We are told
that God is always in control of things and
that there is always time for everything to happen, “a
time to be born
and a time to die…a time to kill and a time to heal…a
time to weep and
a time to laugh…” (Ecclesiastes 3)
To repeat we
should not allow our fears to stay long on
the level of raw, unprocessed instincts and reflex
reactions. With
God, we will find a reason for everything, and that
everything will
somehow work out for the good. (cfr. Rom 8,28)
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