Searching and Finding the Lord God (Bird)

Somewhere in rural Arkansas, amidst marsh and swamp lands, lies the home of a critically endangered and possibly extinct bird called the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. This unusually large and beautiful woodpecker has been on the endangered species list since 1967, when much of its habitat was destroyed by industrialization (the making of Singer sewing machine cases, in particular). Some ornithologists are convinced that the bird has completely died out while others have devoted their lives to studying and searching for the distinctive species, keeping hope alive that the bird still exists, using sporadic but inconclusive sightings over the last 60 years as their evidence.

The Ivory-billed woodpecker is also known as the Lord God Bird, because those who have seen it marvel at its beauty and proclaim, “Lord God, what a bird!” It has captured the imaginations of many, including musician Sufjan Stevens, who wrote a song for an NPR special about the bird and its “altar call”. I was immediately intrigued by the story of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker and surprised that an “altar call” is actually a very poignant description of what I’ve felt in response to it.

The most breathtaking description of a sighting of this bird comes from two men who spotted it together - Tim Gallagher, a wildlife photographer from Cornell, and Bobby Harrison, a college professor from Alabama. Despite no conclusive evidence in the past 60 years that the bird was still alive, these two enthusiasts were convinced that it had survived. So when Gene Sparling, an Arkansas local, posted on a bird watching blog that he may have spotted the Ivory-billed while out kayaking one day, Gallagher and Harrison immediately dropped everything and headed to the swamp.

The two men, who kayaked out and waited expectantly near the spot where Sparling had first spotted the bird, were still floored when it burst out of the woods at close range, turning on its side to give them  a full view of its back. They were both elated and yelled, “Ivory-billed woodpecker!” and, with tears in their eyes, began to scramble over logs ad branches for another precious glimpse. Gallagher described it as “getting slapped in the face”. Both had just seen something they’d been waiting for and searching for their entire lives.

Though the name Lord God Bird is supposedly unrelated to the person of the Lord God, I can’t help but notice the similarities between the searching and the finding of both. Simeon and Anna are specific instances of this, living at a time when the nation of Israel had nearly given up hope for the coming of the Messiah. They were the remnant that believed in the reality of his appearance during their lifetime and were rewarded when they recognized him in the temple for who he was, even though he was only a baby. Like Gallagher and Harrison, they knew what they were waiting and hoping for, devoted their lives to finding it, and rejoiced at the completion of their search.

There is also a correlation between the urgency with which Gallagher and Harrison left their homes to look for this bird and the single-minded search for the kingdom of God that resounds over and over again in the prophets and in Jesus’ parables. Hosea 6 says, “Let us acknowledge the Lord, let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.” In the same spirit of devotion, Jesus talks about grandiose examples of treasure found hidden a field, compelling a man to sell all he owns in order to buy the field. Even the disciples, who are sometimes portrayed as fickle and dull in their understanding, “immediately” leave their fishing nets and follow Jesus when he calls them.

In addition to the similarities of the search, I’ve noticed some similarities between the Lord God Bird and the Lord God himself. First of all, he typically doesn’t show himself when I’m not looking for him. Just as the woodpecker must be searched for intently, I must wait and look for God in order to recognize him when he appears. Secondly, just because he does not appear for long periods of time does not mean he isn’t there. Hope, trust and obedience are tested and cultivated in the times when I don’t see him. Then after a period of waiting, he breaks through the woods and into the clear sky, so to speak, and the sight of him is more awe-inspiring than before.

Buechner sums it up perfectly: “As a poet, Jesus is maybe at his best in describing the feeling you get when you glimpse the Thing itself – the kingship of the king official at last and all the world his coronation. It’s like finding a million dollars in a field, he saws, or a jewel worth a king’s ransom.” Or, to insert our modern example, it’s like sighting a bird that’s supposed to be extinct. “It’s like finding something you hated to lose and thought you’d never find again – an old keepsake, a stray sheep, a missing child. When the kingdom really comes, it’s as if the thing you lost and thought you’d never find again is you.”

By Ruth

Related videos:
"Lord God Bird" by Sufjan Stevens: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-GDRP8eAtg
CBS News video about Sparling, Gallagher, and Harrison: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=947969n