149: MOUNT UP WITH WINGS AS EAGLES.

"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 40:31

This statue is located in a small upstairs room in the Church History Museum in Salt Lake. I stumbled upon it last year trying to find a secluded place. It was a tender mercy. It is symbolic to me in many ways.  Here is the story behind the sculpture:

 The Hopi tell the story of a chief’s son who was given an eagle to raise for a ritual sacrifice. The boy grew to love the eagle, and rather than see it killed, he set it free. As punishment, the boy was banished from his village. In the wilderness, the eagle protected the boy and taught him to fish and hunt. Becoming lonely, the boy decided to return to his village. His people were frightened by his survival and knowledge. Assuming that he had survived by magic, the villagers had him bound. In an effort to drive him away, the youth of the village tied eagle feathers on his arms and back and taunted him. Hearing the eagle’s call, the boy ascended a cliff and leaped. At the moment of leaving the ground, he was transformed into an eagle and he flew to the sun.

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"And he said unto them,

Wheresoever the body is gathered; or, in other words,

whithersoever the saints are gathered, thither will the eagles be gathered together;

or, thither will the remainder be gathered together"

JST Luke 17:37

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"And now I show unto you a parable.

Behold, wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together; so likewise shall mine elect be gathered from the four quarters of the earth."

JST Matthew 1:27

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