Mark 1--The bird's message
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Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.
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In Native American teachings, birds are never just birds. They come bearing spiritual messages for those who listen.
Among the Cherokee, the chickadee is the bird who always tells the truth. In the old days, many warriors told stories about being saved from an enemy lying in wait by a chickadee raising a ruckus.
In many traditions the owl can be a harbinger of death. When Native people have a near-death experience they say, “I heard the owl call my name.” In my line of work I have often been called to pray beside the deathbed of a saint struggling to cross over. On more than one occasion I have seen an owl come near the window in broad daylight while we prayed, then depart when the journey was complete.
In the Christian tradition we often call spiritual messengers, “angels.” In ancient times angels were very real people with a very important job. They carried the words of the king to someone who needed the message. Then they carried the reply back to the king.
That is exactly the way we understand birds in Native spirituality. The spiritual power of a hawk or an eagle is that they can fly closer to the sun than any other birds. They bring the presence of God down to us, and they carry our prayers back to God.
For Jesus, the messenger was a dove. A symbol of peace--true. And a symbol of love--absolutely. But a dove was also a symbol of sacrifice. This meaning could not have been lost on Jesus.
But getting the message was only half of the task.
God waited to see what Jesus would do with the message. That was the reason Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness. He was figuring out his reply to God.
Consider again: If god sent you a messenger in the form of a dove today, how long would it take you to hear it? How long would it take you to reply? Is it possible that God is still sending birds to speak to us--and to carry our reply back to the Creator?
If you are not listening for the Creator to speak through a bird—how DO you listen? What it would it take for you to hear God calling your name? And how would you reply?
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Creator, we have a hard time believing that one of your winged creatures could reveal your will in the trill of a bird song. We prefer to think that when you speak, it sounds like an echo of our own voices, our own thoughts, our own plans. Grant us eyes to see and ears to hear the messages of Creation. And this time, when you speak, we will reply.