European Starling
John Miller
01/11/21
- Windstream Mail
R E F L E C T I O N S Thoughts on nature and the Christian faith - 1/11/21 ______________________________________________________________________ "Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned." - Rom. 5:12 |
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This is a European starling as it appears in winter. White spots appear on the end of the feathers and its color changes from a dark gloss to a blue-green hue on non-breeding birds. A very beautiful bird in the eyes of some, and a terrible pest in the eyes of others. If you are a person who hates starlings, you can blame William Shakespeare or more specifically Eugene Schieffelin. Schieffelin was an avid Shakespeare lover who decided it would be a good idea to bring to America every kind of bird mentioned in the bard's writings. So, on March 6, 1890 he released 100 European starlings in the Central Park of New York City. In just 50 years, starlings were to be found in every state. Today there are over 200 million. The damage these birds do is incredible. From spreading disease to driving away native birds to causing airplane crashes, starlings have earned the ire of many. Programs designed to eradicate them have all failed. What Schieffelin did wrecked havoc in America, but another single individual, Adam, unleashed a far worse plague on all mankind. Scripture tells us that both Adam and Jesus were representative men, that is, what they did affected all those who followed after them. Adam's disobedience brought sin and death to us all. He perfectly represented what we would have done had we been in his place. But those who follow Jesus receive what Jesus did in our place. We all came into this world tainted with the propensity to sin and we all followed that desire. The good news is that by trusting in Jesus, the second Adam, we can switch who will represent us before God. Why be judged as a starling when you can be judged as a spotless lamb? - John
