Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1245033
A CALL TO CONVERSION The Lord is always calling his people to conversion. In normal, everyday life, the call to offer trials and sufferings up to him is ever-present. However, in the midst of this pandemic, when fear and uncertainty are rampant, this call to conversion becomes even more urgent. But what is the basis of this fear? Catholics and Christians rely on the hope evident in the resurrection of Christ to cast aside all fear and doubt. This fact is especially pertinent in the Easter season the Church is currently in. Even so, the fear of death and suffering lingers, especially as the numbers of those people who have died as a result of COVID -19 dominate headlines. However, as Father Francesco Basso puts it, this fear is a deception of the enemy. It is not from God. "Death is not the problem. We will all die," Father Basso said. "In this Easter time, the resurrection announces that death has already been destroyed. The real problem is the fear of death, which is what comes from the suggestions of the devil." Father Basso is the parochial vicar at St. Louis Parish in Englewood, and like Father Fadini, he has also been visiting COVID -19 patients and administering anointings of the sick. He responds to calls from Swedish Medical Center in Denver and various nursing homes in the Denver area. Rather than waiting until a person is on the verge of death, Swedish Medical began calling priests in the morning to come and anoint those who are infected with COVID -19. "This was a smart idea," Father Basso said, "because this means that we are not obliged to wait for the last moment when they are unconscious." In visiting those suffering from COVID -19, Father Basso has witnessed hearts open to hearing and embracing the love of God. He encouraged one man who was Catholic but had been away from the Church for years to return. He heard the confession of a woman who had also been away from the Church for many years and invited her to receive the mercy of God. "Those cases are truly incredible," Father Basso said. The call to conversion extends beyond just those infected with COVID -19, however. It is just as evident in the priests who are visiting the sick and offering prayers for an end their suffering. Just before the cases of COVID -19 began to spike in Colorado, Father Fadini became very ill. He was tested for the virus, but the test came back negative. However, he believes that the Lord used the suffering he endured in his illness to prepare him for what was to come. "It brought me to really change my way of praying and suffering, brought me to reciting some psalms to really ask the Lord for life," Father Fadini said. "Why do I bring this up? Because when I recovered, I resumed the visits the sick and the hospital staff," he continued. "That experience brought me again to feel compassion for the pain of the people and I stopped being in a hurry, because when I was sick the feeling to be a burden for others was painful, while the best balm for me was to see my religious brothers and friends 'wasting ' their time with me, who was unable to do anything for them. "Christ is using my humanity. He is not sending a robot consecrated as a priest. With the affections that I feel for today, he sends me. It's Christ calling me to meet Him in the person who suffers and is sharing in the cross of Christ. "And in doing so, He is molding my heart, forming me to see that He is the true fulfillment. And because of that, I can be also a sign of hope for others." In this Easter time, the resurrection announces that death has already been destroyed. The real problem is the fear of death, which is what comes from the suggestions of the devil." FATHER FRANCESCO BASSO " 11 DENVER CATHOLIC | MAY 9-22, 2020