Foxes and Hens

2 Lent, March 17, 2019

St. John’s, Newtonville, Massachusetts

The Rev. Nancy E. Gossling

During the time of Jesus, the country of Israel was ruled by the Roman emperor Tiberius, and divided into regions which were governed by various leaders. Pontius Pilate, who was the governor of Judea, was known for condemning Jesus to death. Herod Antipas was a Jew who ruled over the region of Galilee, and was in Jerusalem when Jesus appeared before Pilate. A political enemy of Pilate, Herod was also known for killing John the Baptist; and so for Jesus to call Herod a fox on his way to Jerusalem was a dangerous insult for him to make.

            Near our family home on Cape Cod we frequently see red foxes roaming the landscape. In folklore, foxes are typically characterized as cunning creatures sometimes having magical powers; and the red fox's resourcefulness has earned it a legendary reputation for intelligence. Last year I spotted a family of three foxes hanging around the doorstep of a neighbor’s home. Another fox would occasionally appear at our door and then curl up on our deck as if he were the family pet. After napping in the sun for a little while, he would then casually saunter down the driveway in search of who knows what. He seemed to have no fear of me.
            The word “fox” can be used in many ways. For instance, when a man calls a woman a “fox” he is suggesting that she is beautiful. Before animal rights activists became more vocal, wearing the fur of a red fox around your neck was a sign of elegance and wealth. My grandmother owned one of these; quite frankly the face and its claws around her neck gave me the creeps. And then there is that cable network called Fox (which I mention without affirmation or degradation!). Words that describe foxes from these particular examples include adjectives like cunning, resourceful, beautiful, magical, elegant, powerful, wealthy, intelligent, fair, balanced, and unafraid.

Jesus wasn’t flattering Herod, however, when he called him a fox, even if Herod could be described with some of these adjectives. In fact some of the Pharisees encouraged Jesus to stay away from Herod, for they claimed that Herod wanted to kill him. Jesus, a fellow Jew, was on his way to Jerusalem for the Passover and, despite their warning, he remained undeterred. He identified with the prophets who had gone before him and knew that his calling was risky business. Prophets were not afraid to speak truth to power, and they were quick to point out how the people of Israel had strayed from their faithful relationship with God.

Tell Herod that I will “keep on, keeping on” said Jesus. Like the prophet Isaiah, he felt called to open the eyes of the blind, to heal the sick, to cast out demons, comfort the afflicted and grieving, and to let the oppressed go free. Jesus knew that prophets were routinely killed in Jerusalem and yet he said that he must be on his way. His mission was to walk in the Way of Love, fair, balanced, and unafraid.

There is an expression, “There is a fox in the henhouse.” This warning is like the one that the Pharisees gave to Jesus. “Stay away from Jerusalem, Jesus,” they said, “for Herod the fox will kill you.” According to Elyse Bruce, “If there’s a fox in the henhouse, you’ve got problems brewing. Someone has been put in a position where he or she can exploit the situation to his or her own benefit. And what’s more, it’s not that the opportunity is there, waiting to be acted upon, it’s more likely than not that the person in charge absolutely will exploit the situation.”

Bruce goes on to write that “having a fox in the henhouse is no different from asking a thief to guard the bank vault, or expecting the wolf to guard the sheep, or asking a monkey to watch your bananas. Or leaving your dark chocolate around me.They all mean the same thing, and in every instance, the watcher can’t be trusted to do the right job.”  The bottom line? Don’t assign a job to someone who will be in a position to exploit it for his or her own ends. Servant leadership means self-sacrifice not self-service.

Pilate, Herod, and the Jewish religious leaders of their time were all foxes in the henhouse. As our Presiding Bishop recently said, they protected their self-serving political, religious, and economic interests at the very expense of the people and God they claimed to serve. Is this not true today? Are not some of the leaders in our churches, governments, and businesses still guilty of these things, of being foxes in our henhouses? Not just in our own country but throughout the world? (Fox in the Henhouse, posted by Elyse Bruce, March 6, 2013)

Jesus was critical of the various foxes that he saw in his own time. Roman leaders used military aggression to expand their power. Emperors set up people like Pilate and Herod to maintain control over the people in their regions. They set up systems that would fund their treasuries. They maintained power with iron grips, killing anyone who threatened their positions, spoke a different truth, or caused political unrest. The religious leaders neglected issues of justice, and ruled with legalistic demands and unrelenting guilt, even abusing vulnerable people in their care. “Woe to you, Pharisees and scribes,” Jesus said. “You, who like the seats of honor and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces.”

Jesus is aware of the danger in which he places himself when he calls Herod a fox. In parable after parable, Jesus warns his disciples about rejection, hypocrisy, and evil. “I am sending you out like lambs in the midst of wolves,” he tells them. He also encourages them with stories about good Samaritans, lilies of the valley, and birds of a feather. He reminds them that the lost will be found and that they should not fear those who kill the body. “God is the greater power,” Jesus declares. Someone who counts every hair on our heads, and can even raise the dead. “Do not be afraid, little flock,” said Jesus, “for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom of heaven.”

How often Jesus desired to gather the children of God together under his wings as a hen gathers her brood. But they were not willing. Rather seeking their own wills and their own power and their own greed, these religious and political foxes continued to raid the henhouse and kill the chickens under their roof. Seeking justice for them, and showing God’s mercy to them, Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem, where Pilate and Herod were waiting.

My husband Paul often refers to some people as foxhole people. These are the people who will stay with you when the bullets start flying and the bombs start dropping. They are people with good intentions, who stand by you through thick and thin. They are prophets who do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God.

 Foxhole people are people like Jesus. They will speak truth to power despite the danger. They will shower you with God’s loving mercy when you’ve messed up and are in need of forgiveness. When you’re terrified and need comfort, they will hold out their wings for your protection. They are people who follow the Way of Love despite the political and personal cost to themselves.

Barbara Brown Taylor, one of the greatest preachers of our time, offered some reflections on this passage from Luke, using her own experience of living on a farm. She had a henhouse that carried many species of chickens; her favorite one was the Silkies. Since they do not fly, Silkies nest on the ground, are not free range, and are known to make good mothers. Barbara had an orphaned guinea chick and wanted to provide her with some protection, and so she bought a “Blue Silkie” from the chicken lady.  “The blue-gray hen was a stunner,” Barbara said, “with soft herringbone feathers the color of Irish tweed.”

“When the Silkies and I got home, I saved her for the orphaned chick,” wrote Barbara. “First I lay on the grass while she and the baby watched each other through the mesh of the cage.Then I placed her inside. Both she and the baby froze. The baby cheeped. The hen did not move a feather. The baby cheeped again. The hen stayed right where she was. The baby took a few steps toward her, and I held my breath. The gray hen then lifted her wings, and the baby scooted right into that open door.”

“This is counterintuitive, I might add,” wrote Barbara. “If this hen is into the preservation of her own species, then she ought to be looking out for her own babies and letting the others hang, but she does not. She accepts all comers, no questions asked. She has never seen a chick she didn’t like.”  (Christian Century, September 19, 2006)

We are all called by Jesus to be prophets, speaking truth to power and facing the foxes that find their way into our henhouses, into our churches, our synagogues, and our mosques. Prophets also need protection. Hide under the shadow of God’s wings, Jesus said. And keep on strutting towards Jerusalem. There God will accept all comers, no questions asked, and Jesus has shown us the Way.

Genesis 15:1-12,17-18

Philippians 3:17-4:1

Luke 13:31-35

Psalm 27