COVID in Nursing Homes: A Call to Repentance: A Journal of Bible and Theology

This essay details the author's experiences as a medical director at Canterbury Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center in Richmond, Virginia, the first nursing home to have a COVID-19 outbreak in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It explores how the deaths of his patients challenged his faith and raised issues of theodicy. Ultimately, the author does not ask for an explanation of evil, but urges us to examine our culpability and our responsibility, then listen to Jesus's call to repentance (Luke 13:1–5). In the end, our light, as weak as it is, must persist in the darkness.

Theological Reflections on the Pandemic: A Journal of Bible and Theology

As a response to communities of faith that are trying to make sense of the COVID-19 pandemic, this essay explores biblical traditions about "chaos” represented by primordial waters and monsters that disturb the created order. The essay begins with a summary of three biblical portrayals of chaos: chaos as integral to the created world, chaos as mystery, and chaos intensified by human rebellion. The discussion then weighs divine sovereignty and human responsibility and accepts that chaos is a part of life that challenges humans to work to make this world a better place. Among many possible responses to the chaos presented by the pandemic, this article will focus on lament, fear and trust, and repentance.

Desire, Darkness and Hope: Theology in a Time of Impasse. Engaging the Thought of Constance Fitzgerald, OCD ed. by Laurie Cassidy and M. Shawn Copeland (review)

Ever since the publication of her 1984 article, "Impasse and Dark Night" in the volume Living with Apocalypse that brought the contemplative vision of the Carmelite tradition to bear upon intractable contemporary societal issues (the dark night not only of the soul but of the world), the writings of Sr. John of the Cross's delineation of this dark night involves a purifying movement from a selfhood in which love is entangled, complex and unfree through a joyless darkness in which the self is stripped of its former identity and becomes transformed in union with God and others. In the spirit of M. Shawn Copeland's apt and memorable introductory characterization of the work of theology as "rowing toward God in an anguished world," these writers tackle the impasses that paralyze our society today: white supremacy (Laurie Cassidy);the Covid 19 pandemic (Maria Teresa Morgan and Susie Paulik Babka);the preferential option for the poor (Roberto Goizueta);the global climate crisis (Margaret R. Pfeil);the de-colonializing of faith and society (Alex Mikulich);racial [in]justice (Brain Massingale);grace in a violent world (Andrew Prevot);and preaching the wisdom of the Cross (Mary Catherine Hilkert).

THE POST-QUARANTINE CHURCH: SIX URGENT CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES THAT WILL DETERMINE THE FUTURE OF YOUR CONGREGATION

Worship service gatherings will be smaller. 4. Thom Rainer concludes the final chapter by articulating that "the postquarantine era may prove to be one of the most challenging seasons for churches and their leaders. Thom Rainer finalizes by imagining how the first-century Christians felt as they were trying to reach a world that needed to hear the good news of the resurrected Savior.

Prayer and meditation practices in the early COVID-19 pandemic: A nationwide survey among Danish pregnant women. The COVIDPregDK study.

BACKGROUND: The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the derived changes in maternity care have created stress and anxiety among pregnant women in different parts of the world. In times of stress and crisis, spirituality, including spiritual and religious practices, may increase. OBJECTIVE: To describe if the COVID-19 pandemic influenced pregnant women's considerations and practises of existential meaning-making and to investigate such considerations and practices during the early pandemic in a large nationwide sample. METHODS: We used survey data from a nationwide cross-sectional study sent to all registered pregnant women in Denmark during April and May 2020. We used questions from four core items on prayer and meditation practices. RESULTS: A total of 30,995 women were invited, of whom 16,380 participated (53%). Among respondents, we found that 44% considered themselves believers, 29% confirmed a specific form of prayer, and 18% confirmed a specific form of meditation. In addition, most respondents (88%) reported that the COVID-19 pandemic had not influenced their responses. CONCLUSION: In a nationwide Danish cohort of pregnant women, existential meaning-making considerations and practices were not changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly one in two study participants described themselves as believers, and many practised prayer and/or meditation.

SURAH AL-FATIHAH-BASED GUIDANCE MODEL TO REDUCE WOMEN'S ANXIETY OF THEIR FIRST PREGNANCY

The problem of women's pregnancy anxiety is important to study because it is not only related to pregnant women but also closely related to the fetus they are carrying. This article aims to show whether surah al-Fatihah-based spiritual guidance can be a solution for pregnant women experiencing anxiety. The paper discusses how to operationalize surah al-Fatihah-based guidance for pregnant women, how pregnant women can internalize and carry out an action plan to overcome anxiety, and how to evaluate and repeat the understanding and internalization of surah al-Fatihah through prayer. The article relies on the power of experimental research, in which data is collected through in-depth interviews and qualitatively analyzed with interactive models. The results showed that surah al-Fatihah-based guidance and counseling did not directly address anxiety problems but were able to stimulate pregnant women to carry out various activities consistently, which could reduce anxiety. The current study recommends that counselors and psychologists make it an alternative service in helping clients with psychological and spiritual problems.

The examen for life during COVID-19: Impact on interpersonal processes, self-transcendent positive emotions, and mental health symptoms

In times of crisis, such as during a pandemic, people turn to their belief systems to cope. One exercise that may be helpful for individuals as they cope with the COVID-19 pandemic is the examen, a contemplative practice rooted in the Catholic Jesuit tradition. Prior research on the examen is scant but suggests that further research may be promising. Haarman (2020) adapted the Ignatian examen for the context of COVID-19. The Examen for Life During COVID-19 includes seven steps: 1) acknowledging one's emotions, 2) asking for light and insight when reviewing the day, 3) reflecting on the impact of COVID-19 on one's life and how it has influenced one's social connections, 4) reflecting on ways that one is interwoven with others in society, including which connections people often ignore, 5) acknowledging one's emotions throughout the reflection, 6) reflecting on a connection that seems most important or significant, and 7) reflecting on ways that one can maintain a connection with others that is meaningful. The present study explored how practicing the Examen for Life during COVID-19 impacted participants' experience of self-transcendent positive emotions, autonomous interpersonal styles, interpersonal relationship goals, and anxiety and depression symptoms. It also examined the moderating impact of trust in God on mental health symptoms and negative affect. Though results did not reveal support for a priori hypotheses, exploratory analyses revealed that the Examen for Life During COVID-19 may be particularly helpful for those most negatively impacted by the pandemic. The results highlight the utility of studying a variety of contemplative practices, as different practices will likely be helpful for different practitioners. It also prompts consideration of practitioner's prior experience with prayer, the purpose of contemplative psychology, selection of control groups, and limitations of psychological inquiry into spirituality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

"Whatsapp, God?" A comparative analysis of intercessory prayer by ICGC members on whatsapp and in-person congregational settings in Accra, Ghana

Intercessory prayer remains an integral part of Ghanaian Christians'social lives. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted regular in-person congregational intercessory prayer meetings in the country of Ghana. Rather than abandoning the practice of intercessory prayer, churches such as the International Central Gospel Church (ICGC) used chat messenger apps like WhatsApp to leap over the disrupted activities of in-person congregational meetings. This research employed an exploratory sequential mixed-methods approach and the Uses and Gratification Theory and Theological Acceptance Model as its theoretical frameworks to ascertain whether ICGC members consider WhatsApp to be more efficacious than in-person congregational settings for intercessory prayer. The results from 330 ICGC members revealed that ICGC members prefer in-person congregational meetings to WhatsApp for intercessory prayer and augment their intercessory prayer experience with WhatsApp based on the context. WhatsApp, in this regard, is an alternative tool and not a replacement for in-person intercessory prayer. The study provides a spiritual motivations perspective to the Uses and Gratification theory. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

We are (not) Different from the Others: Religious Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Slovakia and India.

Although the narrative of modernity has been rejected by numerous scientists, it remains a powerful paradigm. Several Western countries have, during the COVID-19 pandemic, witnessed renewed interest in some archaic practices and beliefs. Based mostly on media analysis, this paper provides an insight into religious responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in Slovakia and India, two completely different cultural areas. Simultaneously, it challenges the self-identification of the West as the epicentre of rational thought, in contrast to the so-called non-Western world. The self-image of superiority adopted by the modern West in terms of religious relevance has proved to be distorted, as the tendency to turn to spiritual practices in times of crisis is not exclusively a feature of non-Western societies.

The examen for life during COVID-19: Impact on interpersonal processes, self-transcendent positive emotions, and mental health symptoms

In times of crisis, such as during a pandemic, people turn to their belief systems to cope. One exercise that may be helpful for individuals as they cope with the COVID-19 pandemic is the examen, a contemplative practice rooted in the Catholic Jesuit tradition. Prior research on the examen is scant but suggests that further research may be promising. Haarman (2020) adapted the Ignatian examen for the context of COVID-19. The Examen for Life During COVID-19 includes seven steps: 1) acknowledging one's emotions, 2) asking for light and insight when reviewing the day, 3) reflecting on the impact of COVID-19 on one's life and how it has influenced one's social connections, 4) reflecting on ways that one is interwoven with others in society, including which connections people often ignore, 5) acknowledging one's emotions throughout the reflection, 6) reflecting on a connection that seems most important or significant, and 7) reflecting on ways that one can maintain a connection with others that is meaningful. The present study explored how practicing the Examen for Life during COVID-19 impacted participants' experience of self-transcendent positive emotions, autonomous interpersonal styles, interpersonal relationship goals, and anxiety and depression symptoms. It also examined the moderating impact of trust in God on mental health symptoms and negative affect. Though results did not reveal support for a priori hypotheses, exploratory analyses revealed that the Examen for Life During COVID-19 may be particularly helpful for those most negatively impacted by the pandemic. The results highlight the utility of studying a variety of contemplative practices, as different practices will likely be helpful for different practitioners. It also prompts consideration of practitioner's prior experience with prayer, the purpose of contemplative psychology, selection of control groups, and limitations of psychological inquiry into spirituality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

"Whatsapp, God?" A comparative analysis of intercessory prayer by ICGC members on whatsapp and in-person congregational settings in Accra, Ghana

Intercessory prayer remains an integral part of Ghanaian Christians'social lives. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted regular in-person congregational intercessory prayer meetings in the country of Ghana. Rather than abandoning the practice of intercessory prayer, churches such as the International Central Gospel Church (ICGC) used chat messenger apps like WhatsApp to leap over the disrupted activities of in-person congregational meetings. This research employed an exploratory sequential mixed-methods approach and the Uses and Gratification Theory and Theological Acceptance Model as its theoretical frameworks to ascertain whether ICGC members consider WhatsApp to be more efficacious than in-person congregational settings for intercessory prayer. The results from 330 ICGC members revealed that ICGC members prefer in-person congregational meetings to WhatsApp for intercessory prayer and augment their intercessory prayer experience with WhatsApp based on the context. WhatsApp, in this regard, is an alternative tool and not a replacement for in-person intercessory prayer. The study provides a spiritual motivations perspective to the Uses and Gratification theory. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Prayer frequency and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among older adults in Europe.

AIM: Differences in levels of vaccine uptake have emerged across Europe, and this may partly be explained by religious beliefs. Our aim is to study the association between religiosity, measured by prayer frequency, and vaccine hesitancy, and to examine how this association varies across European countries and regions. METHODS: This study was based on 42,583 adults aged 50 years and above from 27 European countries in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), waves 1-8, and the 2nd SHARE COVID-19 Survey. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the associations. RESULTS: Participants were more likely to be vaccine-hesitant when praying 'weekly or less' (odds ratio (OR) 1.32 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.23-1.42) or daily (OR 1.78 95 % CI 1.65-1.92). Praying 'weekly or less' was associated with increased vaccine hesitancy in Southern Europe (OR 1.48 95 % CI 1.17-1.87) and Central and Eastern (OR 1.35 95 % CI 1.24-1.47) Europe, while daily praying was associated with vaccine hesitancy in Western (OR 1.77 95 % CI 1.51-2.08), Southern (OR 1.30 95 % CI 1.03-1.64), Central and Eastern (OR 1.89 95 % CI 1.73-2.06) and Northern (OR 2.75 95 % CI 1.54-4.89) Europe. CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide support for an association between daily prayer frequency and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, with a consistent pattern across European regions.

The offering of incense make : Jewish mystical perspectives on disease and healing

An examination of a passage from the Zohar on Exodus (2:218b‐219b) provides Jewish mystical perspectives on disease, which may help inform a Christian response of solace and healing to illness and suffering in general, and to the COVID‐19 pandemic in particular. The aforementioned passage in the Zohar describes the preparation of incense. The primary purpose of the portion maintains that incense has special healing powers that even relieve people from severe diseases. The relating Midrash Ha‐Ne'lam explains the passage further by referring to the 4th century Palestinian Rabbi Aha arriving at a town that struggles with an epidemic. It describes how R. Aha initiates a ritual containing a study of the Talmud on incense, after which the village is healed from the epidemic. The Jewish theological background and reception of the passage may shed new light on how ritual and sensory experience can alleviate the experience of disease and suffering.

National Prayers: Special Worship Since the Reformation, Volume 3: Worship for National and Royal Occasions in the United Kingdom, 1871–2016 Philip Williamson, Stephen Taylor, Alasdair Raffe, and Natalie Mears, (eds) The Boydell Press, Church of England Record Society, Woodbridge, 2020, cxxxviii + 744 (hardback £120), ISBN: 978-1-78327-505-2

The current volume forms part of a four-part series commissioned by the Church of England Records Society to bring together and provide commentary on the sources of national prayers or special worship in the United Kingdom since the Reformation. While the Church of Scotland, which has always had a strong tradition of extemporary prayer, showed a greater willingness to engage with published forms or prayer and worship, the Church of England, which had historically placed great emphasis upon uniformity and conformity with the uses of the Book of Common Prayer, showed greater willingness to embrace diversity and initiative in the precise forms and expressions of prayers and services to be used on such occasions. In this period, then, we see the first examples of acts of national worship which involved not only the Protestant free churches, but also leaders from the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches as well as of Jewish congregational bodies. [...]even in an age of pluralism and the decline (perhaps) of Christian belief, the first half of the twentieth century witnessed acts of special national worship which were more genuinely national in character than ever before. Given the retreat from the use of legal forms, its content is not predominantly legal in character, but it has much to tell us about the evolving relationship between church, state and nation, and about the changing and evolving role of faith and religion in the life of the nation.

Perceptions and practices on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in a Bouaké prayer camp in Côte d’ivoire

The barrier measures of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), particularly involving the total containment of Greater Abidjan and the closure of borders, have caused social dysfunction in places of worship. In Bouaké, a town in central Côte d'Ivoire, spirituality in the clinical practice of the mentally ill has gained renewed interest at the Rehoboth prayer camp in Séssenoua. The study aims to analyze perceptions relating to COVID-19 and the impact of religious prescriptions and conceptions on attitudes and preventive practices among actors in the prayer camp. For it, interviews were administered to 70 actors of the prayer camp including managers, patients, their parents and visitors. It emerged from this analysis that the lack of resourceful and reliable information associated with the proliferation of rumors explains the ignorance of the modes of transmission of COVID-19 by the actors of the prayer camp. In terms of preventive measures for COVID-19, the results also revealed that they are perceived as factors distorting and altering religious rituals during worship and prayers. It is important that state authorities become aware of these social and psychological impacts and above all, integrate the knowledge, attitudes and practices of faith-based and local communities into preventive measures in the face of COVID-19. © National Association of Social Workers-Zimbabwe/Author(s)

Treating Anti-Vax Patients, a New Occupational Stressor-Data from the 4th Wave of the Prospective Study of Intensivists and COVID-19 (PSIC).

The Prospective Study of Intensivists and COVID-19 (PSIC) is a longitudinal study that besides investigating a cohort of intensivists from one of the two COVID-19 hub hospitals in Central Italy since the beginning of the pandemic (first wave, April 2020), has conducted a new survey at each successive wave. In addition to the variables investigated in previous surveys (job changes due to the pandemic, justice of safety procedures, job stress, sleep quality, satisfaction, happiness, anxiety, depression, burnout, and intention to quit), the latest fourth wave (December 2021) study has evaluated discomfort in caring for anti-vax patients. A multivariate logistic regression model confirmed that high levels of occupational stress (distressed 75.8%) were associated with isolation, monotony, lack of time for meditation, and poor relationships with anti-vaccination patients. Compared to the first phase, there was a reduction in levels of insomnia and anxiety, but the percentage of intensivists manifesting symptoms of depression remained high (58.9%). The study underlined the efficacy of organizational interventions and psychological support.

Spirituality at the Breakfast Table: Experiences of Christian Online Worship Services

Since the COVID-19 pandemics, we have witnessed an increase in online worship services. Nevertheless, HCI has little insight into how technological mediation influences religious experiences and how technology should be designed for use in religious contexts. Therefore, we see a unique opportunity to understand better real-world experiences of technology use in religious rituals and, more specifically, in online worship services. Inspired by contextual design, We virtually observed and interviewed eight persons during and after participation in online worship services. We identified a field of tension between faith, everyday life, individuality, and community. The data suggests that current online worship service systems do not account for believers' needs for community, faith, or extraordinariness. We discuss opportunities for future research and design, and aim to contribute to the understanding of online worship service experiences and the design of technology-mediated religious experiences. © 2022 ACM.

Spirituality during COVID-19 in Northern Italy: The experience of participating in an online prayer group.

Spirituality has ascendant value during times of adversity. Religious activities have beenfound to increase spirituality, and therefore might be considered a coping resource for the individual. The present research aims to explore participants' experience in an online Catholic prayer group in northern Italy that was held throughout the period of COVID-19 social restrictions. The group comprised 16 Catholic individuals aged 34 to 85, who were interviewed in writing following a protocol of four open-ended questions. The results reported four main thematic areas: (1) the benefits of the spiritual journey while coping with the pandemic; (2) the potential of the online setting; (3) the challenges of the online setting; and (4) the bond with God and how it evolved during the pandemic. The findings confirm the valuable contribution of the on-line group religious activity to the participants'    wellbeing, particularly during the time of social distancing.

The pandemic: a time of fears, prayer, and social transformations

The article analyses social behaviours characterising Polish society in the face of an epidemiological threat, both in the past and contemporarily. It shows how the fear of falling ill limited, and limits, the functioning of Polish society during times of epidemics. Furthermore, it highlights many similarities in how Polish people behaved during times of plague in the 17th century and during the current Covid-19 pandemic, while simultaneously exposing the differences. These differences are particularly visible in popular attitudes towards religion. Whilst in the past, widespread illness and death were met with an increase in religiousity and communal devotion, currently, access to places of worship has been significantly limited. This is especially visible in the case of popular pilgrimage sites, many of which have closed down as a direct result of the pandemic. © 2021 Polskie Towarzystwo Ludoznawcze. All rights reserved.