Article May 12, 2003 Issue

PRAYER during an epidemic

By Emilio Castroman

THESE DAYS YOU CAN'T TURN ON THE TV or open a newspaper without hearing about SARS, a virus that's causing concern around the world. Reported to be highly contagious and without a vaccine or known cure, SARS seems a threat to people's health everywhere. People are afraid to fly and have been canceling travel plans. In some cases, governments have prohibited citizens from visiting certain countries because of fears of the epidemic.

This whole situation reminds me of a time in the early 1990s when I was traveling to my home country, Argentina, to visit family and do some business. Upon landing, the first sights I encountered at the airport were posters and notices all over the place warning about a serious epidemic spreading not only through Buenos Aires, but throughout the rest of the country.

A lot of people were afraid of traveling because of the spread of the disease from city to city. The notices posted everywhere warned about the dangers of coming into contact with other people in public places, such as restaurants and theaters—anywhere people were congregating. They warned that you could catch this virus simply by shaking hands with an infected person. I soon discovered that the whole city was gripped by this fear.