This month our country will participate in our quadrennial rite of inauguration. And while our eyes may be glued on the television with pictures coming from Washington D. C. and live-blogging on the internet, we probably should all just take a step outside and look to the skies.
The word "inauguration," after all, comes from the word "augur" and augurs were ancient Roman priests. They were consulted when any important matters of state were to be decided - going to war, business deals, treaties, or electing new leaders. And augurs got their cues by studying the flight patterns of birds.
Historians have noted how corrupt the augurs probably were. Uncannily, birds seemed to cooperate with whoever gave the augurs the nicest donations. But, still, as we inaugurate a new leader I think it's important to look skyward.
And if we did look skyward, what signs would we see?
• Migration patterns altered by climate change.
• Bird species going extinct at the rate of 10 a year.
• Air pollution, noise pollution, water pollution, and ground pollution all heavily impacting avian life.
• Natural habitats and nesting grounds being destroyed.
What signs, indeed?
As a wise man once said, "You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows."
One of the huge differences between ancient and contemporary cultures is how human-centered we are. No doubt it will be the human story that plays large on Inauguration Day. But ancient cultures, which we scoff at for being superstitious or unscientific, at least understood that we as human beings took our place among many creatures in the cosmos, though, perhaps, our impact is inordinately large.
So I pray for our new president because the signs of the birds do not bode well for us. If we are to take our stewardship of all creation seriously, we must look to the skies, to the waters, to the pastures, and to the woods. We must hear what the birds are telling us about who we are and where we are going.
So this Inauguration Day please look skyward and pray.