Huxley the Raven
Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them.
Luke 12: 24 NRSVue
Have you heard the story about Huxley the rescue raven and his loud sneeze? Huxley has lived at the Good Caws Crow Rescue in Prince George, BC, for about 18 months and can mimic the obnoxious allergy sneeze of the owner so perfectly that her husband is confused at times, sure that she left the property.
This situation came to mind as I read about ravens in Adam Nicholson's Bird School: A Beginner in the Wood. There is evidence of a relationship between ravens and humans going back thousands of years, a symbiotic relationship predating cats and dogs. They can be mouthy, aggressive, playful, mutually supportive, social, adaptable, and generally akin to humans in various ways. Nicholson contends that if we were birds we would be ravens.
Raven and the First Men -- Bill Reid
Indigenous peoples get this and the raven of myth is the trickster and central to creation stories. When we visited Haida Gwaii ravens and eagles were everywhere so its not surprising that they are the two principal clans. Southern Ontario is generally crow country but when we lived in Sudbury we heard and saw lots of ravens as we rambled about and they are marvelous flyers, perhaps most evident during mating season. I've actually read a book about the raven master and ravens of the Tower of London.
The bible has some important ravens as well. Noah sends a raven forth from the ark after 40 days to survey the watery world. My personal letterhead, rarely used anymore, features an ark with a raven in flight because I figured congregations should always be asking what our mission should be,
Elijah was fed by ravens in the wilderness. And in Luke's version of Jesus' "don't worry" teaching the generic birds of Matthew are specifically ravens. We are in Earth Month and approaching Earth Day (Wednesday) so why not give a holy shout-out to irreverent ravens?
While the terms for a group of ravens include an "unkindness" and "conspiracy" I prefer "storytelling."
So Elijah went and did according to the word of the Lord; he went and lived by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the wadi.
Elijah 17: 5-6 NRSVue
Prophet Elijah fed by a raven 1318-1321 Gracanica Monastery Belgrade
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