The Dawn Chorus: The Hope of Birds in Advent

Last Sunday we started the liturgical season of Advent. One of the devotionals we are offering this year is called, The Dawn Chorus. Look at these selections from the introduction:

Each year in the Northern Hemisphere, as the days get shorter and the nights get longer and colder, the season of Advent arrives. In the four weeks leading up to Christmas, we pray and light candles and tell the truth about a world full of shadows. We confront the realities of conflict and injustice – and we take responsibility. And then we raise up our voices and sing straight into those shadows, calling on Jesus to come again with light and peace and healing in his wings.

Songbirds all over the world know a thing or two about singing in the dark. In the wee hours of the morning, they begin a great symphony that scientists call the “dawn chorus.” Birds can sing at any time of day, of course, but in the deep blue space between darkness and light, their songs are louder, livelier, and passionately clear.

Advent is the church’s dawn chorus.

 

Birds might just be the ultimate intergenerational connection. When a group of us, from toddler to ninety, gathered on Zoom on Sunday evening for first Advent, we used this devotional to look at the cardinal as hope for Advent.

We learned fun bird facts:

• Cardinals are nonmigratory and never travel further than 1-2 miles from where they were born.
• Cardinals are territorial all of the year except winter, when they work together as a flock looking for scarce food.
• A flock of cardinals is called a college, a radiance or a Vatican of cardinals.

We talked about what is bringing us hope these days:

• The Crew
• Gymnastics
• My family and friends
• Children
• Music

We shared our favorite birds:

• Flamingos
• The small hummingbird
• The osprey because of their feather patterns
• The cardinal
• Woodpecker, I like their sound

So this Advent, look for the birds and what they may teach us about hope, peace, joy, and love. As the prophet Isaiah put it, those who “wait on God” find renewed strength for the journey, rising “with wings like eagles” as we go (Isaiah 40:31).

What is your favorite bird and why? What is bringing you hope these days?

-Written by Brittany Porch

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