Do You Fear the Right Thing? A Meditation on the Story of Chicken Little

Fear is a complex passion. On the one hand, there are things that we ought to fear such as grave physical and spiritual dangers. The fear of being near the edge of a cliff might well save our life. The fear of serious sin and the punishment we might experience or the offense to God (who loves us) is both appropriate and holy. Sadly, more people lack this holy fear rooted in the possible loss of what is most precious to us: our eternal life with God.

There are also things we fear that we should not, and things that we fear more than we should.These sorts of fears are usually rooted in our disordered and inordinate affections.

A disordered affection is a love for something that is sinful. We ought not to love it at all, but we do; this causes us to fear anyone or anything that interferes with accessing and enjoying what is fundamentally sinful.

An inordinate affection is a love for something that is good in itself, but the love we have for it is too great. Loving it too much causes us to fear the loss of it more than we should. Many things in this world are lawful pleasures, but we come to love them too much. We love things more than people, and both things and people more than God. This is all out of order. We are to use things, love people, and worship God. Too often, though, we use people, love things, and forget about God.

There is also the great struggle that many have called the “sin of human respect,” wherein we fear people more than we fear God and seek to please people more than to please God. When we fall prey to this, we are willing to do sinful things in order to ingratiate ourselves to other human beings, fearing and revering them more than we do God.

Fear is a necessary passion for us, but too often our fears are misplaced and inordinate. Our fears are easily manipulated by Satan and the world.

A major area for spiritual growth is knowing what and whom to fear. Apart from God we will seldom get this answer right. We are easy prey for the devil and the world to draw us into all sorts of inordinate and even foolish fears.

Because a story can often have an impact that mere discourse cannot, I would like to illustrate this teaching with a well-known children’s story.

The story is the basis for two phrases in common use. Most are familiar with them, but some have never read (or have forgotten) the story from which they come. The first is “The sky is falling!” and the second is “Chicken Little” (used as a description of a person).

Both these phrases come from the children’s story Chicken Little. It is a story that speaks to the need to be careful about what we fear and what we do not fear. For indeed, one of the traps of Satan is to get us to focus on what we ought not to fear, or on what is secondary, so that we do not focus on what we should fear, or on what is more important. Aristotle, citing Socrates, said that courage is the virtue of knowing what to fear and what not to fear.

Please take the time to read this story completely. It may seem tedious to us modern folks with limited attention spans, but its conclusion is made more powerful by the litany of details. Please share it with your children as well.

Chicken Little was in the woods one day when an acorn fell on her head. It scared her so much she trembled all over. She shook so hard, half her feathers fell out. “Help! Help!” she cried. “The sky is falling! I must go tell the king!” So she ran in great fright to tell the king.

Along the way she met Henny Penny. “Where are you going, Chicken Little?” Henny Penny asked.
“Oh, help!” Chicken Little cried. “The sky is falling!”
“How do you know?” asked Henny Penny.
“Oh! I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears,
and part of it fell on my head!”
“This is terrible, just terrible!” Henny Penny clucked. “We’d better run.”

So they both ran away as fast as they could. Soon they met Ducky Lucky. “Where are you going, Chicken Little and Henny Penny?” he asked.
“The sky is falling! The sky is falling! We’re going to tell the king!” they cried.
“How do you know?” asked Ducky Lucky.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said.
“Oh dear, oh dear!” Ducky Lucky quacked. “We’d better run!” So they all ran down the road as fast as they could.

Soon they met Goosey Loosey waddling along the roadside. “Hello there, Chicken Little, Henny Penny, and Ducky Lucky,” called Goosey Loosey. “Where are you all going in such a hurry?”
“We’re running for our lives!” cried Chicken Little. “The sky is falling!” clucked Henny Penny. “And we’re running to tell the king!” quacked Ducky Lucky.
“How do you know the sky is falling?” asked Goosey Loosey.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said. “Goodness!” squawked Goosey Loosey. “Then I’d better run with you.”

And they all ran in a great fright across a meadow. Before long they met Turkey Lurkey strutting back and forth. “Hello there, Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, and Goosey Loosey,” he called. “Where are you all going in such a hurry?”
“Help! Help!” cried Chicken Little. “We’re running for our lives!” clucked Henny Penny. “The sky is falling!” quacked Ducky Lucky. “And we’re running to tell the king!” squawked Goosey Loosey.
“How do you know the sky is falling?” asked Turkey Lurkey.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said. “Oh dear! I always suspected the sky would fall someday,” Turkey Lurkey gobbled. “I’d better run with you.”

So they all ran with all their might, until they met the fox, Foxy Loxy. “Well, well,” said Foxy Loxy. “Where are you rushing on such a fine day?”
“Help! Help!” cried Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, and Turkey Lurkey. “It’s not a fine day at all. The sky is falling, and we’re running to tell the king!” “How do you know the sky is falling?” said Foxy Loxy.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said. “I see,” said Foxy Loxy. “Well then, follow me, and I’ll show you the way to the king.”

So Foxy Loxy led Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, and Turkey Lurkey across a field and through the woods. He led them straight to his den, and they never saw the king to tell him the sky was falling.

Notice how fearing the wrong thing, and fearing it to excess, blinded them to what was more truly to be feared, what was more truly a threat. Here lies a doorway for the devil. He incites us to fear lesser things like unpopularity, loss of money, poor health, the loss of worldly trinkets, the next election, global warming, persecution, and worldly setbacks, so that we do not fear Judgment Day and the possibility of Hell.

The day of destiny is closing in, but never mind that! The sky is falling: the wrong political party is in power; the planet is overheating; the economy is about to collapse. You might lose your home to a storm; people might not think you are pretty enough, tall enough, or thin enough. Be afraid; be very afraid! You don’t have time to pray and ask God to get you ready for Judgment Day because you are too busy being afraid that eating food X may cause cancer, or that people may be laughing at you because of the five or ten pounds you gained last Christmas, or that the Yellowstone Caldera may blow at any time.

I will not tell you that the aforementioned concerns have no merit, only that they have less merit than what most people never think aboutor fear: where they are going to spend eternity. Chicken Little and her friends were easy prey for Foxy Loxy because they were obsessed with lesser things and ignored more dangerous (and obvious in this case) things like a fox!

Yes, “Foxy Loxy” has you worried about smaller and passing things. Now you are easy prey. It will take but a moment for him to lead you astray and have you for dinner!

Make sure you fear the right thing. God has a plan to simplify our lives. We are to fear Him and be sober about getting ready, with His help, for the certain-to-come Day of Judgment. If we fear Him, we don’t need to fear anyone or anything else.

Bishop Robert Barron has observed that the three tallest buildings in Chicago are insurance buildings. Fear “looms large” in our culture, but no insurance company can insure you against the only certain threat you face: Judgment Day. Only God can do that.

The sky may or may not be falling. (Personally, I doubt 80 percent of the media’s fearmongering.) But Judgment Day surely is looming. Foxy Loxy (Satan) is waiting for you. Will he get you? Will your fear of the Lord help you to avoid falling prey to his deceptions?

Courage is fearing the right thing and the right one.

Do You Fear the Right Thing? A Meditation on the Story of Chicken Little

Fear is a complex passion. On the one hand, there are things that we ought to fear such as grave physical and spiritual dangers. The fear of being near the edge of a cliff might well save our life. The fear of serious sin and the punishment we might experience or the offense to God (who loves us) is both appropriate and holy. Sadly, more people lack this holy fear rooted in the possible loss of what is most precious to us: our eternal life with God.

There are also things we fear that we should not, and things that we fear more than we should.These sorts of fears are usually rooted in our disordered and inordinate affections.

A disordered affection is a love for something that is sinful. We ought not to love it at all, but we do; this causes us to fear anyone or anything that interferes with accessing and enjoying what is fundamentally sinful.

An inordinate affection is a love for something that is good in itself, but the love we have for it is too great. Loving it too much causes us to fear the loss of it more than we should. Many things in this world are lawful pleasures, but we come to love them too much. We love things more than people, and both things and people more than God. This is all out of order. We are to use things, love people, and worship God. Too often, though, we use people, love things, and forget about God.

There is also the great struggle that many have called the “sin of human respect,” wherein we fear people more than we fear God and seek to please people more than to please God. When we fall prey to this, we are willing to do sinful things in order to ingratiate ourselves to other human beings, fearing and revering them more than we do God.

Fear is a necessary passion for us, but too often our fears are misplaced and inordinate. Our fears are easily manipulated by Satan and the world.

A major area for spiritual growth is knowing what and whom to fear. Apart from God we will seldom get this answer right. We are easy prey for the devil and the world to draw us into all sorts of inordinate and even foolish fears.

Because a story can often have an impact that mere discourse cannot, I would like to illustrate this teaching with a well-known children’s story.

The story is the basis for two phrases in common use. Most are familiar with them, but some have never read (or have forgotten) the story from which they come. The first is “The sky is falling!” and the second is “Chicken Little” (used as a description of a person).

Both these phrases come from the children’s story Chicken Little. It is a story that speaks to the need to be careful about what we fear and what we do not fear. For indeed, one of the traps of Satan is to get us to focus on what we ought not to fear, or on what is secondary, so that we do not focus on what we should fear, or on what is more important. Aristotle, citing Socrates, said that courage is the virtue of knowing what to fear and what not to fear.

Please take the time to read this story completely. It may seem tedious to us modern folks with limited attention spans, but its conclusion is made more powerful by the litany of details. Please share it with your children as well.

Chicken Little was in the woods one day when an acorn fell on her head. It scared her so much she trembled all over. She shook so hard, half her feathers fell out. “Help! Help!” she cried. “The sky is falling! I must go tell the king!” So she ran in great fright to tell the king.

Along the way she met Henny Penny. “Where are you going, Chicken Little?” Henny Penny asked.
“Oh, help!” Chicken Little cried. “The sky is falling!”
“How do you know?” asked Henny Penny.
“Oh! I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears,
and part of it fell on my head!”
“This is terrible, just terrible!” Henny Penny clucked. “We’d better run.”

So they both ran away as fast as they could. Soon they met Ducky Lucky. “Where are you going, Chicken Little and Henny Penny?” he asked.
“The sky is falling! The sky is falling! We’re going to tell the king!” they cried.
“How do you know?” asked Ducky Lucky.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said.
“Oh dear, oh dear!” Ducky Lucky quacked. “We’d better run!” So they all ran down the road as fast as they could.

Soon they met Goosey Loosey waddling along the roadside. “Hello there, Chicken Little, Henny Penny, and Ducky Lucky,” called Goosey Loosey. “Where are you all going in such a hurry?”
“We’re running for our lives!” cried Chicken Little. “The sky is falling!” clucked Henny Penny. “And we’re running to tell the king!” quacked Ducky Lucky.
“How do you know the sky is falling?” asked Goosey Loosey.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said. “Goodness!” squawked Goosey Loosey. “Then I’d better run with you.”

And they all ran in a great fright across a meadow. Before long they met Turkey Lurkey strutting back and forth. “Hello there, Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, and Goosey Loosey,” he called. “Where are you all going in such a hurry?”
“Help! Help!” cried Chicken Little. “We’re running for our lives!” clucked Henny Penny. “The sky is falling!” quacked Ducky Lucky. “And we’re running to tell the king!” squawked Goosey Loosey.
“How do you know the sky is falling?” asked Turkey Lurkey.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said. “Oh dear! I always suspected the sky would fall someday,” Turkey Lurkey gobbled. “I’d better run with you.”

So they all ran with all their might, until they met the fox, Foxy Loxy. “Well, well,” said Foxy Loxy. “Where are you rushing on such a fine day?”
“Help! Help!” cried Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, and Turkey Lurkey. “It’s not a fine day at all. The sky is falling, and we’re running to tell the king!” “How do you know the sky is falling?” said Foxy Loxy.
“I saw it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own ears, and part of it fell on my head,” Chicken Little said. “I see,” said Foxy Loxy. “Well then, follow me, and I’ll show you the way to the king.”

So Foxy Loxy led Chicken Little, Henny Penny, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, and Turkey Lurkey across a field and through the woods. He led them straight to his den, and they never saw the king to tell him the sky was falling.

Notice how fearing the wrong thing, and fearing it to excess, blinded them to what was more truly to be feared, what was more truly a threat. Here lies a doorway for the devil. He incites us to fear lesser things like unpopularity, loss of money, poor health, the loss of worldly trinkets, the next election, global warming, persecution, and worldly setbacks, so that we do not fear Judgment Day and the possibility of Hell.

The day of destiny is closing in, but never mind that! The sky is falling: the wrong political party is in power; the planet is overheating; the economy is about to collapse. You might lose your home to a storm; people might not think you are pretty enough, tall enough, or thin enough. Be afraid; be very afraid! You don’t have time to pray and ask God to get you ready for Judgment Day because you are too busy being afraid that eating food X may cause cancer, or that people may be laughing at you because of the five or ten pounds you gained last Christmas, or that the Yellowstone Caldera may blow at any time.

I will not tell you that the aforementioned concerns have no merit, only that they have less merit than what most people never think aboutor fear: where they are going to spend eternity. Chicken Little and her friends were easy prey for Foxy Loxy because they were obsessed with lesser things and ignored more dangerous (and obvious in this case) things like a fox!

Yes, “Foxy Loxy” has you worried about smaller and passing things. Now you are easy prey. It will take but a moment for him to lead you astray and have you for dinner!

Make sure you fear the right thing. God has a plan to simplify our lives. We are to fear Him and be sober about getting ready, with His help, for the certain-to-come Day of Judgment. If we fear Him, we don’t need to fear anyone or anything else.

Bishop Robert Barron has observed that the three tallest buildings in Chicago are insurance buildings. Fear “looms large” in our culture, but no insurance company can insure you against the only certain threat you face: Judgment Day. Only God can do that.

The sky may or may not be falling. (Personally, I doubt 80 percent of the media’s fearmongering.) But Judgment Day surely is looming. Foxy Loxy (Satan) is waiting for you. Will he get you? Will your fear of the Lord help you to avoid falling prey to his deceptions?

Courage is fearing the right thing and the right one.

Reflection 156: The Lord is Our Refuge

There are times in life when fear enters into your life.  You may have some daunting task before you, or may be walking down a path of the unknown.  These, and many other experiences in life, can become a cause for fear and anxiety.  Fear of the unknown can especially become all consuming.  But it need not be if the Lord is with you and is your constant Refuge.  Jesus desires that you turn to Him in childlike trust and simplicity, knowing that He will lead you through life every step of the way.  We need not fear if our eyes and heart are fixed on Him.  He will never leave us (See Diary #797).

What is it that you fear the most in life?  What is it about your future that worries you?  Does that which is unknown to you cause much anxiety?  Know that the Lord desires to free you of these heavy burdens by inviting you to take refuge in His Sacred Heart.  By turning to Him, as a child, you will be freed of the fears that are quite burdensome.  Ponder your fears this day and then turn to the Lord in perfect abandon.  As you do, He will lift them from you, replacing them with His perfect peace.

Lord, I turn to You in my anxiety and fear.  I trust You in all things and pray that You increase my capacity for faith and hope in You.  Please become my refuge and give me the confidence of a child, to turn to You in my time of need.  Jesus, I trust in You.

Reflection 156: The Lord is Our Refuge

There are times in life when fear enters into your life.  You may have some daunting task before you, or may be walking down a path of the unknown.  These, and many other experiences in life, can become a cause for fear and anxiety.  Fear of the unknown can especially become all consuming.  But it need not be if the Lord is with you and is your constant Refuge.  Jesus desires that you turn to Him in childlike trust and simplicity, knowing that He will lead you through life every step of the way.  We need not fear if our eyes and heart are fixed on Him.  He will never leave us (See Diary #797).

What is it that you fear the most in life?  What is it about your future that worries you?  Does that which is unknown to you cause much anxiety?  Know that the Lord desires to free you of these heavy burdens by inviting you to take refuge in His Sacred Heart.  By turning to Him, as a child, you will be freed of the fears that are quite burdensome.  Ponder your fears this day and then turn to the Lord in perfect abandon.  As you do, He will lift them from you, replacing them with His perfect peace.

Lord, I turn to You in my anxiety and fear.  I trust You in all things and pray that You increase my capacity for faith and hope in You.  Please become my refuge and give me the confidence of a child, to turn to You in my time of need.  Jesus, I trust in You.

“I gave them your word, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the Evil One. They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth.”  John 17:14-17

“Consecrate them in the truth.  Your word is truth.”  That’s the key to survival!

Scripture reveals three primary temptations we face in life: The flesh, the world and the devil.  All three of these work to lead us astray.  But all three are conquerable with one thing...the Truth.

This Gospel passage above specifically speaks of the “world” and the “evil one.”  The evil one, who is the devil, is real.  He hates us and does all he can to mislead us and ruin our lives.  He tries to fill our minds with empty promises, offers fleeting pleasure, and encourages selfish ambitions.  He was a liar from the beginning and remains a liar to this day.

One of the temptations that the devil threw at Jesus during His forty day fast at the beginning of His public ministry was a temptation to obtain all the world has to offer.  The devil showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the Earth and said, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.”

First of all, this was a silly temptation given the fact that Jesus already was the Creator of all things.  But, nonetheless, He allowed the devil to tempt Him with this worldly enticement.  Why did He do this?  Because Jesus knew we would all be tempted with the many enticements of the world.  By “world” we mean many things.  One thing that comes to mind, in our day and age, is the desire for worldly acceptance.  This is a plague that is very subtle but affects so many, including our Church itself.

With the powerful influence of the media and the global political culture, there is pressure today, more than ever, for us as Christians to simply conform to our age.  We are tempted to do and believe what is popular and socially acceptable.  And the “gospel” we are allowing ourselves to hear is the secular world of moral indifferentism.

There is a powerful cultural tendency (a global tendency due to the Internet and media) to become people who are willing to accept anything and everything.  We have lost our sense of moral integrity and truth.  Thus, the words of Jesus need to be embraced more today than ever.  “Your Word is Truth.”  The Word of God, the Gospel, all that our Catechism teaches, all that our faith reveals is the Truth.  This Truth must be our guiding light and nothing else.

Reflect, today, on how much of an influence the secular culture has on you.  Have you given into secular pressure, or the secular “gospels” of our day and age?  It takes a strong person to resist these lies.  We will resist them only if we stay consecrated in the Truth.

Lord, I do consecrate myself to You.  You are the Truth.  Your Word is what I need to stay focused and to navigate through the many lies all around me.  Give me strength and wisdom so that I may always remain in Your protection away from the evil one.  Jesus, I trust in You.

“I gave them your word, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the Evil One. They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth.”  John 17:14-17

“Consecrate them in the truth.  Your word is truth.”  That’s the key to survival!

Scripture reveals three primary temptations we face in life: The flesh, the world and the devil.  All three of these work to lead us astray.  But all three are conquerable with one thing...the Truth.

This Gospel passage above specifically speaks of the “world” and the “evil one.”  The evil one, who is the devil, is real.  He hates us and does all he can to mislead us and ruin our lives.  He tries to fill our minds with empty promises, offers fleeting pleasure, and encourages selfish ambitions.  He was a liar from the beginning and remains a liar to this day.

One of the temptations that the devil threw at Jesus during His forty day fast at the beginning of His public ministry was a temptation to obtain all the world has to offer.  The devil showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the Earth and said, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.”

First of all, this was a silly temptation given the fact that Jesus already was the Creator of all things.  But, nonetheless, He allowed the devil to tempt Him with this worldly enticement.  Why did He do this?  Because Jesus knew we would all be tempted with the many enticements of the world.  By “world” we mean many things.  One thing that comes to mind, in our day and age, is the desire for worldly acceptance.  This is a plague that is very subtle but affects so many, including our Church itself.

With the powerful influence of the media and the global political culture, there is pressure today, more than ever, for us as Christians to simply conform to our age.  We are tempted to do and believe what is popular and socially acceptable.  And the “gospel” we are allowing ourselves to hear is the secular world of moral indifferentism.

There is a powerful cultural tendency (a global tendency due to the Internet and media) to become people who are willing to accept anything and everything.  We have lost our sense of moral integrity and truth.  Thus, the words of Jesus need to be embraced more today than ever.  “Your Word is Truth.”  The Word of God, the Gospel, all that our Catechism teaches, all that our faith reveals is the Truth.  This Truth must be our guiding light and nothing else.

Reflect, today, on how much of an influence the secular culture has on you.  Have you given into secular pressure, or the secular “gospels” of our day and age?  It takes a strong person to resist these lies.  We will resist them only if we stay consecrated in the Truth.

Lord, I do consecrate myself to You.  You are the Truth.  Your Word is what I need to stay focused and to navigate through the many lies all around me.  Give me strength and wisdom so that I may always remain in Your protection away from the evil one.  Jesus, I trust in You.

We should preach the whole counsel, the entire plan of God. It is too easy for us to emphasize only that which pleases us, or makes sense to us, or fits in with our world view. There are some who treasure the Lord’s sermons on love but cannot abide His teachings on death, judgment, Heaven, and Hell. Some love to discuss liturgy and ceremony but the care of the poor is far from them. Others point God’s compassion but neglect His call to repentance. Some love the way He dispatches the Pharisees and other leaders of the day but suddenly become deaf when the Lord warns against fornication or insists that we love our spouse, neighbor, and enemy. Some focus inward on Church politics but neglect the outward focus of true evangelization the Lord commands (cf Mat 28:19).

If we do this, we will suffer. Paul speaks of tears and trials. In preaching the whole counsel of God (not just your favorite passages or politically correct, “safe” themes), expect to suffer. Expect to not quite fit in with people’s expectations. Jesus got into trouble with nearly everyone. He didn’t offend just the elite and powerful. For example, even His own disciples puzzled over His teachings on divorce, saying, “If that is the case of a man not being able to divorce his wife it is better never to marry” (Matt 19). As a result of Jesus’ teaching on the Eucharist, many left Him and would no longer walk in His company (John 6). When Jesus spoke of His divine origins, many took up stones with which to stone Him, but He passed through their midst unharmed (Jn 8). In addition, Jesus spoke of taking up crosses, forgiving one’s enemies, and preferring nothing to Him. He forbade even lustful thoughts, let alone fornication, and insisted we learn to curb our unrighteous anger. 

Yes, preaching the whole counsel of God is guaranteed to bring the wrath of many upon us.

Have you proclaimed the whole counsel of God?