This theory of David Lebling's is quite intriguing!
Here are a couple more resonances:
1. The `lost dog finding its way home' motif resonates with the perception of death among some Christians as `going home to one's Maker'.
2. The winged beings as beyond-humans resonate with Wolfe's own Hierogrammates, shaped by humans according to human ideals (`united, compassionate, just') never actually achieved by the human race itself.
I can't quite draw an exact analogy, but I'm always willing to believe that Wolfe often works impressionistically rather than with exacting exactness. I think he's willing to deviate slightly from his clever constructs in order to deliver a haunting image or a well-timed surprise.
-- Dan Rabin