Looking around the interwebs, one would think that the multitude of selfies is a new trend for some revolutionary movement. But alas, it’s true! These revolutionaries are ordinary human beings holding what I call a COVID-piety card, which states that they have received the first or second COVID vaccine. Let freedom ring! Their smiling faces next to a filled-out paper is a powerfully symbolic statement. Let’s put politics aside for the moment. Nah. Who am I kidding: let’s talk directly about the politics of such things.
It is very clear that virtually everyone showcasing their card with some fancy hashtag and proudly showing forth their front teeth to their screens are convinced that they are making a political statement. Further, from the 200-300 samples of people who I’ve seen on various platforms, a quick glance at their profile shows unmistakably that they proudly voted for Joseph Biden as the 46th American president. Now, I could read a lot into this, but I won’t, except to read the following three statements(!) into such displays.
First, these acts from priests and parishioners alike and a multitude of pagans, reveal that such shows to the world communicate a certain level of pride for such an accomplishment. They truly believe that what they did was a good thing and that others–for the sake of health–should follow similarly. This is a revolution of sorts. They could quietly get their vaccines and resume life as usual–a decision that I would highly respect– but that is not the intent of a revolution, which is often loud and hashtaggy! These are the new social media voices for an environmentally new world.
Second, these acts also mean that they have an elevated sense and respect for the word of the state, and not particularly in the Pauline sense if you catch my nuance. In particular, such people are prone to accepting Fauci’s analysis that even after the two shots, they should still wear masks and practice social distancing and other state-directed declarations. In one case, a well-respected theologian in the UK posted a picture of him and three of his children commemorating their ability to see each other after quite some time but also stating his sadness that his fourth child could not join because it would violate local COVID numeric regulations, and that was more important than having the whole family together.
Finally, there is no doubt that for most, these displays are acts of revolutionary piety. Mind you, most of these folks posting selfies are people born after 1999. They are the smartphone generation that has less than 1% chance of dying or even suffering major side effects from COVID. These are the future leaders of our nations, who will take every opportunity to speak truth to power one selfie at a time and one piece of paper at a time. If COVID vaccines came with numbers, they would gladly tattoo it.
These are in my estimation another religious example of the principle that everything is religious. These folks are not showing forth their baptismal cards to the world in submission to the Triune God, but they are stating that their new symbol of freedom is a piece of paper with the signature of a medical professional that testifies that now their body/soul is safe from all alarm.
I find the entire exercise ridiculous on a number of levels, not because I oppose vaccines, but because I oppose statist piety, and because I oppose the entire political agenda behind the curtain. Count me a post-vaccine selfie card skeptic.
