ABSTRACT
In the next chapter, called “‘He has filled the hungry with good things’ (Luke 1:53): Theologizing on the Pandemic, Pagpupuri, and Pantries,” Ma. Maricel S. Ibita and Ma. Marilou S. Ibita explore the New Testament to reflect on the current pandemic. According to them, collective grief had pervaded the year 2020 because of the multilevel and multi-pronged losses of the COVID-19 pandemic. They explore Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:53) from the lens of the problem of food insecurity. Moreover, they locate Mary in the context of hunger in 1st-century CE Roman Palestine and relate her experiences to the context of the urban poor women community in the Philippines that takes part in erecting community pantries. Next, they analyze the relationship between hunger, the pandemic, Mary, and Jesus and his meals in the Lukan gospel to highlight the flourishing of community pantries in the Philippines. This is finally related to the United Nations Sustainable Goal of Zero Hunger (UNSDG#2).
