Chapter XXIV.
About nocturnal birds; first and foremost about the song of the nightingale hatching: about the owl, bat, and rooster; from which certain things are adapted to our customs.
But what is this? While we are carrying on our conversation, behold, nocturnal birds are already flying around you, and in that very moment when they remind us to bring our conversation to a close, they also produce their own reminder. Various birds return to their nests, which they are accustomed to leave at dusk and hide themselves in, singing a song bidding farewell to the setting of the day; so that they do not depart without offering thanks, by which every creature praises their creator.
Night also has its own songs, which it is accustomed to use to soothe the vigils of humans; the owl also has its own songs. But what should I say about the nightingale, which, as a vigilant guardian, warms its eggs with a certain fold of its body and lap, solacing the sleepless labor of the long night with the sweetness of its song? It seems to me that this is the main purpose of its existence, so that it can animate the eggs it warms with not only its sweet melodies, but also with the warmth of its body. That thin, but modest, woman imitating it, drags a stone with her arm for the use of the mill, so that there may be no lack of food for her little ones, and she soothes the sad affliction of poverty with her nocturnal song. And although it cannot imitate the sweetness of the nightingale, nevertheless it imitates it with the diligence of piety.
The owl itself, just as it does not feel fear at the darkness of the night with its large and gray pupils of nocturnal darkness, exercises its flights unaffected by the darkness of the night. But when day dawns and the brightness of the sun spreads, its vision becomes dull, as if it wanders in darkness. By this indication, it declares that there are some who, although they have eyes to see, are not accustomed to seeing, and they perform the function of their vision in darkness. I speak of the eyes of the heart, which the wise of the world possess, and yet do not see. They perceive nothing in light, they walk in darkness while exploring the dark depths of demons, and believe they see the heights of heaven, describing the world according to their limited understanding. But they have deviated from faith and are ensnared in the darkness of perpetual blindness. Despite having the light of Christ and the Church before them, they see nothing. They open their mouths as if knowing everything, sharp in trivial matters but dull in eternal matters. They expose their own ignorance through lengthy and convoluted arguments. So while they desire to fly away with subtle words, they vanished like owls in the light.
87. The bat, an unknown creature, received its name from flying at dusk. It is both a flying and a four-legged animal, and it uses teeth that you would not find in other birds. It gives birth to live young, like four-legged animals, rather than laying eggs. It flies in the air like other birds, but it is accustomed to flying at dusk. However, it flies not with feathers, but with the support of its membrane, with which it hovers and moves about as if it were flying with feathers. And there is also this lowly creature, which cling to each other and hang from a certain place like a cluster of grapes: and if one of them lets go, they all come apart. This is accomplished by a certain act of charity, which is difficult to find among the people of this world.
Moreover, the song of the rooster is pleasant in the nights; not only pleasant, but also helpful, as it acts like a good companion and awakens the sleeping, reminds the anxious, and comforts the traveler, announcing the progress of the night with its melodious call. While it sings, the thief abandons his traps; while it sings, Lucifer himself rises, illuminating the sky; while it sings, the worried sailor casts off his sorrow, and every evening storm and tempest calm down with its frequent breezes; while it sings, devout devotion springs forth for prayer and also renews the task of reading; and finally, while it sings, the very rock of the Church washes away its own guilt, which it had previously incurred by denial before the rooster's crowing. With this song, hope returns to everyone, the inconvenience of the sick is relieved, the pain of wounds is diminished, the burning of fevers is mitigated, faith is restored to the fallen, Jesus looks upon the wavering, corrects the wandering. Finally, he looked at Peter, and immediately the error disappeared: the denial was rejected, followed by the confession. This did not happen by chance, but the reading teaches that it happened according to the will of the Lord. For it is written, because Jesus said to Simon: The rooster will not crow until you deny me three times (Matthew 26:34). Peter, although strong during the day, is troubled at night; and he falls before the crowing of the rooster, and he falls a third time; so that you may know that it is not a thoughtless slip of speech, but also a disturbance of the mind. However, after the crowing of the rooster, he becomes stronger, and now worthy to be seen by Christ: for the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous. He recognized that a remedy had come, after which he could no longer err: and transformed from error into virtue, he wept bitterly; so that his tears might wash away his mistake.