THURSDAY HOMILY: Raise Your Heads and Hold up the Sky. No More Chicken Littles.

11/29/2012

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spent many years studying our Christian history, I know that none of this is new. We are not the first generation of Christians to live in a culture of death. The early Christians went into a declining Roman empire that accepted the placing of unwanted infants out on rocks to be either eaten by animals or taken by slave traders as normal!

It was a practice called exposure. Those early followers of Jesus Christ - and many, many other Christians throughout the ages - have also faced the rancid fruit that accompanies a culture's descent into hedonism and self idolatry. However, they went into their cultures as leaven and light, filled with faith, hope and love - and transformed them from within. So must we.

We are called to follow the One who stretched out His arms and embraced the whole world on that second tree on Calvary's hill, doing for us what we could never do for ourselves. That Cross brought heaven to earth and earth to heaven, forming a bridge between them.

With His great act of surrendered love, He who knew no sin ended the separation which resulted from it and created the world anew in Himself. (See, 2 Cor. 5: 17 - 21) From the wounded side of the New Man, the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, the Church was formed and that Church is called to continue His redemptive work until He returns to complete the total recapitulation of all things.

He defeated death by Death and through His glorious Resurrection He mediates the hope that we who bear His name can walk in, if we choose to do so. So, let the acorns fall all around you, I assure you the sky is not falling, even if it appears to be.

Christians are called to hold the sky up for others by living our lives now in Christ and helping those bound by the fear of death to find new life in the One who conquered it. The author of the Letter to the Hebrews explains:

"Now since the children share in blood and flesh, he likewise shared in them, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who through fear of death had been subject to slavery all their life" (Heb 2:14-15)

I am also going to practice a technological version of what has long been called custody of the eyes in Moral theology. I am going to stop reading the articles, blog posts and commentaries by the growing number of naysayers in our camp who are losing the supernatural sight which is informed by faith and fueled by Christian hope.

They are the Chicken Little's of our time and seem to have forgotten their umbrellas. Our Catechism reminds us in one of its numerous treatments concerning hope that "The first commandment is also concerned with sins against hope, namely, despair and presumption". (CCC #2091)

By the way, we should remember the end of that little childhood story: "Chicken Little always carried an umbrella with her when she walked in the woods. The umbrella was a present from the king. And if - KERPLUNK - an acorn fell, Chicken Little didn't mind a bit. In fact, she didn't notice it at all."

Raise your heads and hold up the sky. Fear is useless, what is needed is trust.

- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: end times, second coming, parousia, maranatha, chicken little, hope, faith, love, fear, End of the world, Deacon Keith Fournier

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1 - 6 of 6 Comments

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5 months ago
Deacon, I agree whole heartedly about No More Chicken Littles. But we just re-elected a Chicken Little back into the White House. Chicken Little yelled, "The sky is falling". Obama and the Party of Death and Deceit yell, "The glaciers are melting", "Black people, they're going to put you in chains", "The rich people aren't paying their fair share", "Women, there's a war against you by the Christians", If we remember the story of Chicken Little, it did not have a happy ending. Chicken Little was a stupid character used by the evil Fox to deceive the barnyard foul into believing the sky was falling and they would find safety in the Foxes den. They all ran to the Foxes den and were eaten up by the Fox. The Marxist/Communist Party has had success over the past 200 years using these same Chicken Little deceit tactics. These tactics are working well here in America and around the world.
Paul-Emile Leray
5 months ago
Entertaining and always encouraging! Thank you.
Paul-Emile Leray
michael
5 months ago
I agree that we cannot be a Chicken Little. But we also cannot be a Pollyanna either. We live in a post-Christian world that has largely rejected Christ, His Mystical Body which is only the Roman Catholic Church, and the Social Reign and Kingship of Christ over all men and all public institutions. These days are quite different than that of Pagan Rome. To the pagans, Christianity was new, beautiful, and the most spectacular message ever given. Truth and Charity lived by early Catholics, as well as their willingness to die for the Holy Faith, brought conversion to pagan Rome. But today, we have Christians who have, by enlarge, entered into a virtual apostasy and a practical atheism. To paraphrase Proverbs, the West has gone back to paganism as a dog goes back to its vomit. The devil had been cast out, but no he has come back to the west with seven more demons looking to obtain a perfect possession. We all know that Christ will win, but yet we also know that His flock will suffer and be crucified as He was. As a final note, our dear Lord, at times, avoided Jerusalem and His enemies. He stayed on the outskirts until it was time. We need to form close Catholic relationships with true believers. We need to reorientate ourselves with a greater focus on prayer and the interior life. It is cold out there...we need unity first and lots of Sacramental grace. As you can see by the number of celebrity priests who have fallen in recent years, you cannot go it alone and think that you can convert the world like ST. Paul. It is time for a little bit of hibernation before we go out to gather souls in the spring.
Stephen Volk
5 months ago
THIS EXCELLENT ARTICLE BEGS A CLOSER LOOK AT OUR LADY OF FATIMA! Thank you Deacon Keith Fournier! We should not be hiding our heads as there is MORE to do than ever before! And one way this is very strongly displayed is here: LadyofFatima.Wordpress.com
abey
5 months ago
The Bible in Prophecy does say that the nations will mourn His coming again to His words "Will I find faith upon my Return". So the mourning is due to the lack or loss of faith to the fear, for lack of faith is to live in darkness, as darkness comprehendeth not the Light, to the fear. However the Bible does say ''Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom" which is not to fear death. For every one that Stands before God or his Angels do tremble, including the demons, a cue to that is the beloved Apostle John who fell as dead finding himself before the Lord of Glory.
Emma
5 months ago
You are so right! We worship the indescribable, all powerful, uncontainable Creator of the Universe. Not only this puny planet that we call earth, but the whole universe! He controls it all and He is our Father and our Friend! How much better does it get? Do I ever find myself slipping into doubt and fear? Of course. At those times, I ask myself one simple question that puts me right. "Emma," I ask myself, "How big is your God? " The answer then leads me to the obvious conclusion. "Do not fear! "

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