A message from a sparrow

One day as Jesus was preaching in Galilee to the apostles, as recorded in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 10, an unusual event must have taken place.

A sparrow must have flown past or rested on the branch of a tree and drawn the attention of Jesus.

He said, “Are not two sparrows sold for next to nothing, yet not one falls to the ground without your Father’s consent?” He had spoken about difficult days ahead for the apostles.

They would be imprisoned, beaten and betrayed, even by family members, because of their devotion to Jesus.

These words must have aroused fear in the hearts of the apostles.

Jesus addressed this fear by saying, “Have no fear of anything.

You are worth more than a flock of sparrows.” The tiny sparrow revealed God’s love.

The sparrow also speaks of God by its life. An adult sparrow is prompted to build a nest. When it is done, the sparrow is further prompted to sit and lay eggs in the nest and remain on them until new sparrows start appearing from the eggs. She is to feed them and teach them how to fly. How can we explain this policy of the sparrow without its revealing an imprint of God’s care for the sparrow? Indeed, this is true of all creation.

The words of Jesus, that the death of every sparrow comes under God’s care, helps me to find this message very comforting at the present time. Two months ago a dear niece of mine, who spent 30 years in Egypt operating four schools for children of diplomats, passed away suddenly in a hospital in Dublin. Because of the coronavirus, no family could visit her, yet the message of Jesus about the sparrow assures me that God was present with my niece, providing some comfort at the time of her death.

The sparrow’s message reveals God’s care for every creature. Spiritually, we are realizing we are all members of the human family and do not walk alone. All God’s commandments are about preserving relationships rather than individuals. Among the commandments are prohibitions against thieving, lying, murder, adultery and coveting what another possesses. God asks people to honor the family relationship, especially our relationship with God. We do not, as the song says, walk alone.

The United Nations, established in 1945, is a movement towards fostering unity in the human family. We all need each other. The present pandemic is also revealing that to us.

May God grant us the grace to live in peace and unity and to outlaw war and violence. This was the message as recorded in Luke 2:13-14, at the birth of Christ: “A multitude of the heavenly hosts, praising God and saying, ‘glory to God in the peace on earth to those on whom his favor rests.’”