The Birds of the Air on Maundy Thursday

7 “But ask the animals, and they will teach you;
    the birds of the air, and they will tell you;
8 ask the plants of the earth,[a] and they will teach you;
    and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
9 Who among all these does not know
    that the hand of the Lord has done this?
10 In his hand is the life of every living thing
    and the breath of every human being.

Job 12:7-10 (NRSV)

We have been finding solace in nature during these ominous days of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the midst of what amounts to a plague we have stayed away from everyone, including our beloved children and grandchildren.

Of course, this means we haven't been attending worship services (most churches/synagogues/mosques/temples are closed anyway.) Holy Week has become a virtual experience and while there may be online "gatherings" there is a sense of unprecedented displacement.

Early this morning I was pondering the gentle power of Maundy Thursday, a service which was always the most lightly attended of Palm Sunday, Thursday, Good Friday, with the crescendo of Easter morning. I found it deeply meaningful as a pastor with its theme of humble service and abiding love. We always washed the feet of a few during the service as a reminder that Jesus washed the feet of his followers at their final meal together. 

As I looked out the window to our feeders I saw the male and female cardinals of our backyard arrive. The male fed the female, which is part of their mating ritual. While we shouldn't anthropomorphize what other creatures do, it was an act of selflessness which I found quite touching.

I always want to learn from the birds of the air and the creatures around us. The Creator brought them into being as part of the rich tapestry of our planet, so why not look to them for inspiration. These two were gifts to this Groundling on a day when Maundy Thursday reflection must take a different shape. I'm grateful to them, and to God. 

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, 
what you will eat or what you will drink,
 or about your body, what you will wear. I
s not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 

26 Look at the birds of the air; 
they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns,
 and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. 
Are you not of more value than they? 
27 And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?

Matthew 6:25-27 (NRSV)