Monday, April 15, 2013

Birds on the Balcony

Yesterday, as I sat writing, a seagull crashed into the glass door that looks out over the harbor. It fell to the balcony and stood stunned, moving almost not at all. I thought about intervening in it's plight, but realized that I had no ability to be  a bird savior. I watched for some time as he/she simply "sat" silently next to the door.  I don't know if birds get concussions in their bird brains, but this is what seemed to have happened.

After what seemed to me a long while, the bird began to move. It turned from the door and spread its tail feathers and wings, as if testing itself for readiness to fly. By whatever measure, it must have ascertained that it was a bit crippled, so it sat silently for a while longer. I watched with a bit of a prayer in my breast that the bird would, once again, fly away.

A bit of time passed before the bird hobbled over to the edge of the balcony and peered over. It spread its wings again. I was almost sure that, this time, it was going to take off, but it demurred, once again. I could see that with each effort it was getting stronger, and my attention was called to something else for a few seconds. When I focused again the gull was gone, much like in the lives of our children.

Today, a hummingbird drank from the nectar in our hydrangea plant on the same balcony. I'm beginning to think of it as a miniature bird sanctuary.

Pentecostal Prayer Day 13

My Pentecostal prayer for today is that Pope Francis I has the humility to admit that the church has no power to confer absolution for sins. Only God and those who have been harmed can forgive the perpetrators for creating mortal wounds in the community of The Christ.

I pray that this pope will call on all who took part in taking away the faith of those abused by clergy to come forth, confess to their victims, and turn themselves into the legal system, rendering "unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's." Perhaps this way, some of the formerly faith-filled who lost their faith in God through these abuses will be rendered back unto God.