Rarely does the work of the church just stop. In those parts of the world served by Catholic Near East Welfare Association — the Middle East, northeast Africa, India and Eastern Europe — the churches have always found ways to circumvent the instability, the violence, the lack of resources, even persecution, to live the Gospel. From Gaza to Syria, religious houses have opened their doors to offer safety during times of war. Parish communities in Lebanon, Jordan and Israel have received refugees and migrants, offering comfort, food, childcare and work. Men and women with Catholic social services in Iraq and the West Bank have healed the sick, consoled the distraught, and taught those eager to learn. The ministries are many, and vary in their approach, but all are inspired by Jesus.Then suddenly, last March, everything came to a sudden halt: “The coronavirus pandemic swept through, closing worldwide everything in its wake: commerce, business, government, religious acts — life!” wrote CNEWA’s president, Msgr. Peter I. Vaccari. “For a moment, everything paused, and stood at a standstill. Our world suddenly and eerily went quiet, and dark. CNEWA, too, reflected this sudden turn of events. It was a sad day when we locked the doors to our New York offices. It was sadder when we heard of the many good works of the churches we are privileged to serve shuttering their doors.”“For the first time an invisible enemy has totally stopped the life of the church; any form of pastoral care and sacramental activity has been suspended,” reported Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa of Jerusalem on the life of the church in the Holy Land. For nearly a century, this agency of the Holy See has worked nonstop in its assistance to the Eastern churches and the people they serve, and then one day in March, it seemed to end. Our shock in New York did not last long. We began to receive word from our friends, colleagues and partners on the ground that, despite the ravages of COVID-19, the closures, the lockdowns and the quarantines, the work of the church continued. Christians and non-Christians alike turned to the church in their need, looking for masks, sanitizers and soap, a hot meal or medical care, or just warm words of comfort. And throughout CNEWA’s world, driven by their zeal for the Gospel, religious sisters, lay men and women, priests and bishops responded in love. Despite the risks, they did what they could, often with meager resources. (These “foot soldiers of Christ” then turned to the CNEWA family to share their stories and seek help. See more in CNEWA’s One magazine)               What we have learned is that the coronavirus does not discriminate — it affects all regardless of race, religion or national identity — but its impact on the most vulnerable, the elderly and the poor, is perhaps most severe. Pope Francis reminded us of this during his Easter Urbi et Orbi: