In the past, a pandemic kind of crisis would be attributed to an angry God, punishing man for his disobedience. There are still some who hold to that view, but not so many. Most are more comfortable leaving God or any moral consideration out of the picture altogether, settling for “It is what it is!” Note, however, when the crisis hits, moral issues kick into high gear.
I don’t think there is any argument that the response to crisis engenders moral issues, but what about the coronavirus itself. Is it really just a coincidence that it hit in China which, under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is drowning in profound moral issues, such as suppression of free speech and freedom of religion, blatant stealing of intellectual property, forced organ harvesting!, massive concentration camps for “rebellious” muslim Uighars, to name a few. The rest of the world has been in denial of this moral depravity because it has been mesmerized by China’s economic success, just as it was in the 1930s when Nazi Germany was “flourishing.” In the latter case, the awful WWII was the result of that denial. Perhaps this coronavirus is a warning to wake up the rest of the world to the threatening tyranny and aggression of the CCP. The fatalities surrounding coronavirus will be chump-change compared those from a possible WWIII!
The Bible records many cases of crises leading to oppression of some kind or another when there is a moral breakdown of society. The following explanation I find enlightening:
(Note that here evil is referred to as illusion only as it is illegitimate, having no moral justification.)
“Even the disposition to
excuse guilt or to conceal it is punished. The avoidance
of justice and the denial of truth tend to perpetuate sin,
invoke crime, jeopardize self-control, and mock divine
mercy.”
“The muddy river-bed must be stirred in order to purify the
stream. In moral chemicalization, when the symptoms
of evil, illusion, are aggravated, we may think in our ignorance that the Lord hath wrought an evil; but we ought
to know that God's law uncovers so-called sin and its
effects, only that Truth may annihilate all sense of evil
and all power to sin.” (Science & Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy)
In these difficult times, we can be reassured: "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (II Timothy 1:7) - not a time to shrink back, but a time to rise up.