Coronaviruses are a specific group of viral diseases that target animals. However, a handful of these have been known to be transmittable to humans. Among them is COVID-19, a recent discovery.
The whole premise of this other-worldly order (or disorder) which the pandemic has caused feels like it came straight from a sci-fi thriller. Only in the case of COVID-19, the disaster is a real threat. Presumed to have hailed from a Wuhan marketplace, further speculation has some scientists believing bats to have been the initial carriers of the virus, spreading it to livestock that was sold at market. Bats have previously been identified as carriers for Ebola and rabies.
Science and Sanctity
It sounds like something out of an old Vincent Price film. A sickly bat. Everyone on edge. An unknown ailment on the rampage against the collective immune system of humanity. Scientists toiling. A man finding his consolation within the walls of an abandoned church. The only sure dwelling of safety – one’s own home.
But reality is not as black and white as the vintage movies are. While it is serious, the current crisis is not going to be the cause of the zombie apocalypse. The world has faced global medical emergencies in the past and has emerged triumphantly, looking down on the lessons of history from their perch upon the shoulders of geniuses – and of saints, who are often one and the same.
Who are the saints amid the health crises of history? It is those who practice both medicine and the corporal works of mercy. One of the themes of Christian tradition is the natural compatibility of medicine and mercy. Largescale health disasters have forged saints, like diamonds, in heated moments and under terrific pressure.
Our Calling to Mercy
Trials and tribulations bring out the truth. They show our humanity for what it is and draw attention to what it ought to be. In 1918, while the Spanish flu pandemic was ravaging through Philadelphia, one group of people who stepped up to serve the community was the uncloistered Catholic nuns. They actually volunteered to be in proximity with the sick to serve them in the most immediate way possible.
When put into practice, this is what the corporal works of mercy look like. It is simply caregiving, showing others that they are loved. In these works, charity and compassion shine forth.
In the realm of science fiction, there is one film saga that reflects much of the concern we face in the real world with COVID-19. In its own way, it also provides a very Christian response to how we are called to show mercy and charity to the sick. It’s the Planet of the Apes saga of the past decade. From the very beginning, it deals with fatal sickness, interaction and connection, and the dilemma of being co-inhabitants of Earth.
The Evolution of Caesar and the Spread of a Virus
In Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), we watch the mentally-enhanced ape Caesar, played by Andy Serkis (Gollum from Lord of the Rings), grow and learn – particularly about family. For the most part, he experiences a loving and accommodating family atmosphere in the home of Will Rodman. It is perhaps his youth spent in good friendship with Will that molds his moral code later on.
Remember, fantasy holds no bounds on symbolism. Many of the apes in this franchise display virtue and reasoning beyond their natural capabilities. In this story specifically, the ape Caesar ends up embodying an ethical code equal or superior to that of many of the human characters. Thus, in numerous instances, Caesar is the example of righteousness throughout the films.
At the close of this first installment of the trilogy, we see concerning symptoms from a relatively minor character by the name of Hunsiker. Hunsiker received a nasty mauling from a defensive Caesar who had been intimidated. As an ominous nose bleed preludes, Hunsiker contracted a virus, later dubbed Simian Flu, from the bite. He was exposed to the same chemical that runs through Caesar’s veins. The virus spreads globally. The result is lethal for many humans.
Fast forward to War for the Planet of the Apes (2017). Caesar, who has been accepted as the leader of the ape colony, does his best to provide for the society they have formed. He is a family man, or family ape I suppose. An elite military dispatch wreaks havoc on their woodland home, killing Caesar’s son and mate. As a result, he has a personal vendetta against the militaristic faction responsible for their deaths.
How to Care for Others in Sickness
In the film, this is at a time when mankind’s only response to fear seems to be violence. During what is labeled the “ape-pocalypse,” the humans treat the ape community and even their fellow man like trash. The man in charge of the military outpost which has enslaved the apes holds himself to no moral code. If any of his men come down with the virus, he has them executed. He kills his own people, and he cares less for the lives of Caesar’s kind.
Despite this mindset coming from the human representatives of the story, the apes do things differently. Caesar, though initially intent on seeking vengeance against the Colonel who killed his family, eventually shows mercy to this broken man in sparing his life. He doesn’t take the life of the person he hates. Similarly, it is the ape community that accepts and graciously takes care of Nova, a little girl who caught the Simian Flu.
She would have been unwelcome in a community of her own kind. In fact, they would have killed her like the Colonel had done to those of his men whom he knew were sick. Yet the apes, despite all the prior pains humans subjected them to, took her in and cared for her. Nova was one of the rare human cases to contract the disease and live.
Through the good-willed chimp characters in Planet of the Apes, we are given a positive image of caregiving, especially in times of great stress and uncertainty. The apes didn’t know what their future looked like. They were fighting for their freedom and were in search of a new home. Nevertheless, the apes were willing to look out for Nova. Amid their own uncertainty of belonging, they provided a sick little girl with a home. They consoled her and made sure her needs were provided for.
Isn’t this what we are called to? I know we can’t all go volunteer at a hospital, nor am I saying that would even be a prudent thing to do. But the point is to have a general openness to being caregivers. We are not supposed to be like the military faction that turned its back on its own. We are called to something much higher: recognizing human dignity. This means striving for personal health (self-care) and for the general public health. It means going out of our comfort zone and doing it with bravado like those Philadelphia nuns countering the pandemic a century ago. It’s manifested in actions big and small, from watching out for your parents’ immune systems during COVID-19 to working as a paramedic or physician to help the sick.
This caregiving may even, as the CDC has addressed, be offered to maintain the mental and emotional health of our brothers and sisters. It can be as simple as a cheerful or endearing comment to soothe the anxiety of another.
God asks all of us to bring peace and happiness to others. He desires for each of us to serve, but He calls each along a unique path. One thing is for sure: when He calls, we should act on His invitation.
*Dedicated to Matt Pribble
John Tuttle
John Tuttle is a Catholic journalist, blogger, and photographer. He has written for Prehistoric Times, Culture Wars Magazine, Those Catholic Men, Catholic Insight, Inside Over, Ancient Origins, Love They Nerd, We Got This Covered, Cultured Vultures, and elsewhere. He can be reached at jptuttleb9@gmail.com.