The Case for Roosters

 

6. Bitter was the night, thought there'd never be a morning.

Bitter was the night before the break of day.

7. Bitter was the night, thought the cock would crow for ever.

Bitter was the night before the break of day.

                                 Sydney Carter Voices United 132

Should we say that we have "favourite" hymns for Holy Week? It is such a solemn time as we make our way toward Good Friday, even knowing that the joy of Easter is close at hand. The imagery of Sydney Carter's words and the simple yet elegant tune always touch me to the core. This hymn draws on the gospel story of Peter's denial of Jesus, not once but three times, on the night into early morning of his trial. The rooster crows "for ever" in Peter's memory.

Roosters show up a few times in scripture, and not always in such a negative light. Jewish culture in the 1st century was agrarian, for the most part, and somewhere in the city of Jerusalem people were keeping chickens. Were there ever complaints by urban dwellers about the wake-up calls of roosters? 

Corinne Fesseau feeding her rooster Maurice in Saint-Pierre-d’Oléron in 2019. His crowing prompted a court case. Credit...Kasia Strek for The New York Times

This came to mind after reading about new legislation which protects rural environments from those who want to spend time in the country as long as its basically a theme park rather than the terroir where creatures live and crops grow. In one instance a couple was sued by neigbours to drain their pond so the frogs would stop croaking and Maurice, a rooster was sued (actually the owners) for being too rowdy. The New York Times article begins: 

 PARIS — The crow of a rooster and the ringing of a church bell at dawn. The rumble of a tractor and the smell of manure wafting from a nearby stable. The deafening song of cicadas or the discordant croaking of frogs. Quacking ducks, bleating sheep and braying donkeys.Perennial rural sounds and smells such as these were given protection by French law last week, when lawmakers passed a bill to preserve “the sensory heritage of the countryside,” after a series of widely publicized neighborhood spats in France’s rural corners, many of them involving noisy animals.

I'm delighted that the creatures prevailed and that church bells are covered under the new legislation. The connection is ironic, but Christians are becoming an endangered species in some Western nations, so any help is appreciated. I might feel differently if our town allows urban chickens and there is a raucous rooster,  but until then I'm willing to crow about the outcome. 

                                          

                                      Basilica of St. Appollinare Nuovo 6th Century Mosaic