Foolish Good Deeds Should Not Be Pursued

Original: Ma Shitou

Recently, a popular saying has emerged: 'In the face of a major epidemic, ordinary people become great, and great people become insignificant.' This is indeed true. Everyone organizes, every group, and even each individual, expresses their emotions in their own way. As a person of faith, we not only pray to the Creator for the patients with sincerity, but also wish blessings for those working in the epidemic zones, praying for the compassionate Lord to bestow their grace. At this time, praise or cheering slogans directed at them are of no significance.

Whenever we see on the media that medical personnel have been infected, or even fallen in their posts, our hearts are deeply saddened. Besides the instinctive pain, we also pray sincerely for them, hoping they will receive the compassionate mercy and protection of the Lord. They were originally like us, with an instinct for safety, and they should be the first to know the extent of the risks associated with contact with patients. They chose to sacrifice for their profession, which is admirable.

We should use vocabulary appropriate for our faith identity to express our feelings towards them, rather than using empty, pale statements that violate the principles of faith. Otherwise, even doing good is foolish. Penfold wrote, 'Foolishness is a moral defect. Foolish people cannot be truly good because foolish people cannot distinguish right from wrong, they regard evil as parents and righteous conscience as enemies. Foolishness itself is an incurable evil.'