‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.' (Exodus 19:2, NIV)
Like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft, the Lord alone led [Israel]. (Deuteronomy 32:11-12, NIV)
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:21, KJV)
There are no images of biblical eagles in the Sacred Art Pilgrim Collection, but this bookplate of St. Francis of Assisi with an eagle perched on his arm is the perfect saintly substitute, especially since this lover of God's good creation in all its forms is honored throughout the Western Christian world on October 4th. St. Francis is famed for his sermon to the birds, so, it is not hard to imagine he would have joyfully engaged in holy conversation with this noble creature, a symbol in the Bible for the swift and sure nuturing care of God. This ex libris is from a series of color etchings of the Life of St. Francis by Ukrainian Printmaker Sergey Kirnitskiy. (John Kohan)