All God’s Creatures

Introduction

Last year I presented a series on the trees of the Bible which ran all through the season of Trinity or Ordinary Time. This year we will engage with the members of the animal kingdom that appear in the Bible.

In this occasional series I may suggest that you to do some additional reading and investigation for yourself and I may not use the most obvious texts.

The list of animals in the account of Creation in Genesis chapter 1 is very familiar but there are other descriptions of creation in different books of the Bible and many more animals appear throughout the text. I will take a very broad approach including living creatures from smallest to largest; virus and gnat to elephant and whale; vertebrates and invertebrates; and various borderline cases. Texts are from the New Revised Standard Version, Anglicized Edition, with the Apocrypha and Deutero Canonical Books. The collection of animals included in this series is not exhaustive and the names for some creatures may differ in other translations.

Do take some time to look at our creation window: the great west rose window in St George’s.

Consider the variety and beauty of the creatures depicted there.

In the song of praise sung by the three young men, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, who were thrown into the burning fiery furnace we find:

The three with one voice praised and glorified and blessed God in the furnace:
“Blessed are you, O Lord, God of our ancestors,
and to be praised and highly exalted for ever.
…
Bless the Lord, you whales and all that swim in the waters;
sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever.
Bless the Lord, all birds of the air;
sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever.
Bless the Lord, all wild animals and cattle;
sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever.
…
All who worship the Lord, bless the God of gods,
Sing praise to him and give thanks to him,
For his mercy endures for ever.

                                           [Prayer of Azariah. 28, 29, 57 – 59, 68 (Apocrypha)]

Birds of prey

We have seen previously that one of the aspects of Leviticus is to list animals that may not be eaten. Some birds ‘are an abomination’ [Lev 11. 13]. Among those named are birds of prey: ‘the eagle, the vulture, the osprey, the buzzard, the kite of any kind; …the hawk of any kind; the little owl … the great owl, … the desert-owl, the carrion vulture, …’ [Lev 11. 13 – 18]. The exact names of some of the birds are uncertain but they should be understood to include all birds of prey known in that region.

Animals that are unclean for eating also contaminate a person by touch. It may be that uncleanness is determined by reason of hygiene. For example if an animal is known to carry disease, such as the pig. It also may be associated with the description of creation. Only birds that fly are clean. Birds of prey are in contact with dead meat and so they are unclean. The little owl is mentioned as a bird ‘of the wilderness … of the wild places’ [Ps 106. 6].

The eagle appears in the visions of Ezekiel and Daniel. The faces mentioned in Ezekiel (see week 5 – The Lion) are recalled in Revelation [Rev 4. 7] and the “woman” is ‘given the wing of the great eagle’ so that she could fly from the serpent’ [Rev 12. 14].

During their travels in the wilderness God told Moses to remind the people that he had shown loving care to his people all through their journey: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself’ [Ex 19. 4]. The strength, swift, swooping and soaring flight and the care of its young are cited in many (at least 61 references) texts in the Jewish Scriptures.

Since early March, I have been watching, via a webcam, the nest building, egg laying, chick rearing and care of the young as they grow and fledge by a pair of bald eagles in north California near where one of my children lives. The three youngsters are now soaring high and ready to migrate south for the summer. This process is truly a wonder of God’s creation.

Blessed are you, O Lord our God,
Maker of all living creatures:
fish in the sea, birds in the air,
and animals on the land.
May we always praise you
for all your beauty in creation.
Blessed are you, O Lord our God,
in all your creatures.
Amen