Luke 13:4 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!"
We are given an icon to hold onto. An icon to gaze upon. An icon so significant that it will reverberate with the essence of God. The icon is not easily described by words, because words are rational and develop from logical constructs that for centuries have erroneously been associated with masculinity. The icon breathes other dimensions that speak of heart matters, emotional things that are not easily scratched out on a black-board but are felt deeply in the impression of the hearts. This icon finds itself in the form of everything that is supposedly female, touched with broody emotion, and self sacrificing generosity. This icon has feathers and it is soft, cuddly and warm. You want to nestle up against the icon, the warmth of the feathers, and the shadow the wings make it nurturing and caring. The icon of a Hen and her chicks is the perfect picture of the God who cares for us. It speaks to us of the fussing, clucking and energy involved in keeping her loved ones in eyesight for protection. We should all have a picture of a hen and her chicks up on our walls. Somewhere close where we pray in the morning or evening. So now and again we can look up and without much thinking remind ourselves of God's attitude toward us. God cannot help clucking and fussing over us.
