I guess by now, most of us are used to grabbing for the mask when going out in public.  Many states now, including Arkansas, have some sort of mask mandate when in public. So more and more people are wearing them at the grocery store, gas station, Walmart, and really anywhere where they are likely to contact people. Now I know, no one likes wearing a mask. Especially in the summer in Arkansas, where the sweltering temperatures make the mask all that more uncomfortable.

The truth is, science tells us that by wearing a mask we help slow and prevent the spread of disease. As more and more states promote face masks as a way to control the spread of COVID-19, the top-line message has been: wear a mask to protect others. While it’s true that most face masks  are more effective in preventing you from launching droplets into the air than breathing in already dispersed droplets – that doesn’t mean masks offer no protection to the wearer.

It’s likely that face masks, by blocking even some of the virus-carrying droplets you inhale, can reduce your risk of falling seriously ill from COVID-19, according to Monica Gandhi, MD, an infectious disease specialist at UC San Francisco.  “The more virus you get into your body, the more sick you are likely to get,” she said.

Yet still, there are those who simply will not wear a mask. It infringes upon their “freedoms.” But wearing a mask is not about you.  You might think it’s worth the risk to not wear a mask because you aren’t afraid of catching the disease.  But in reality,  it’s about the other guy, the other gal. Wearing a mask means, “I care about you. I choose not to infect you if I have a disease that I’m not even aware of.”  So refusing to wear a mask might be the ultimate in selfishness. But then again, no surprise, we are a selfish lot.

The truth is, we don’t like to be told what to do. Especially by the government, or “Big Brother,” or anyone else. We are fiercely independent as Americans. But in this case, not wearing a mask may be to our detriment and to the detriment of society as a whole.  It’s kind of ironic really. Last year, if you wore a mask into a gas station you would likely raise suspicion as you would look criminal. Now, if you don’t wear a mask you raise suspicion, and you still might look criminal. So my 65 year-old diabetic self will wear a mask. 

But even when I take it off, I still wear a mask and think nothing of it. You see, we all wear many invisible “masks” in our day-to-day encounters, even with those closest to us.  No one knows us completely, and we try to hide our true selves, even when we look in the mirror.  Getting behind the image we project as our “ideal self” and seeing our true selves is the hallmark of emotional health.  Yet it is more difficult to see than wearing a wool face mask in the summer heat.

Maybe nowhere are “masks” more prevalent than in religion.  Religion can hide a myriad of things. We appear one way on Sunday, but are a different human come Monday morning.  We have all heard the argument about too many hypocrites in the church.  And there are, of course.  But the truth is we all wear masks, even after we think we have taken them off.  The word “hypocrite” is rooted in the Greek word hypokrites, which means “stage actor, pretender, dissembler.” So think of a hypocrite as a person who pretends to be a certain way, but really acts and believes the total opposite. Hypocrites usually talk a big talk but fail to follow their own rules — like an outspoken vegetarian who secretly eats bacon (from vocabulary.com).  In ancient Greece, actors in the theater were only male.  There were no elaborate sets or costumes, and the few actors on stage would change parts by simply changing masks.  Thus, the Greek beginnings shed light on the word hypocrite– hiding behind a mask.

Religiously, Wayne Oates in his book, Behind the Mask,  describes eight personality disorders, and specifically their religious expressions.  Our various religious “mask” are used to hide who we really are.  We use religion to cover up our defects of character, wearing masks, as it were. The trouble is, we are not fooling God, and can only fool ourselves for so long. The real us is behind the mask, waiting for a crack in our armor to assert itself, sometimes in less than opportune times.

As we strap on our masks to go out into public, may we pause to look at our faces in the mirror-  what is the real me all about?  What masks are my favorites to hide behind? What are the ones I wear and don’t even realize it?  Admittedly, nobody wants to see all of the real Stan (not even me, Stan) but it might help if I face up to the man in the mirror every once in a while.  Hard as it can be, it’s the only route to authentic change.

I pray for the day when we will no longer need masks-  physical ones for sure, but also emotional/spiritual ones. Or as the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:12, “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.” This kind of self-awareness might benefit more than our neighbor- it might save our very own souls.