Courage and a Cardboard Box

Last week there was a report of a Common Murre in Rockport. While this species is rarely seen this particular bird was reported in the same location for a few days in a row. Unfortunately, the reason for its remaining in one location was that it had apparently been through an oil spill. It had been seen sitting on the rocky shoreline. This is bad news for a murre. Murres are part of a group of seabirds known as pelagics. Pelagic birds spend all their time on the water, coming to land only to breed. One birder commented that someone with courage and a cardboard box could retrieve this bird and get it to a wildlife rehabilitator. Sounding like a reasonable proposition, I set out in hopes of seeing and possibly helping this bird.

When I got to the location I couldn’t see the bird anywhere so I took off over the rocks searching. The pounding surf and uneven footing were enough to make me cautious but not actually fearful. Not finding the murre, I scanned the area carefully. Then I realized the potential risk involved in this rescue mission. Where the water met the shore the rocks were green with plants that would make them quite slippery. And there were perilously steep drops and numerous small loose rocks ahead. Had I located the bird, saving it would certainly have involved a good deal of courage.

One thing Mel Gibson is attempting to do with the movie, The Passion of the Christ, is make this very point. Telling just the part of the story involving the passion, i.e. suffering, of Jesus places emphasis on the high cost of salvation. The viewer is compelled to consider the courage necessary for Jesus to remain true to his calling knowing the incredible pain that lay ahead, including death. My minor attempt at salvation for one bird required a small dose of courage and a cardboard box. Christ’s work of salvation for all humanity required nearly inconceivable courage and a cross!

The pale comparison continues when I consider that it was my passion for birds that drove me…what level of passion for undeserving humanity drove Jesus to accept such dire consequences? Finally, I realized that when that birder commented on the need for courage he was assuming another element. What he assumed and we cannot ignore when considering the passion of the Christ is a closely related, yet indispensable element—compassion. God’s compassion for you and me is more than immense. Forty days is not nearly long enough fully to know this truth, but Lent is a good time to reflect on God’s mad love for us.