was thinking about how many people never reach their full potential in life
because they fail to pay attention to the "small Foxes". Small Foxes are
the little things that we ignore because they just don't seem big enough to
bother with but it is usually the small things that end up causing us to
fall. Song of Solomon 2:15 says "Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom." So think of it
like this... the little foxes enjoy grapes just like Jesus enjoys fruit in
your life and my life. And these little foxes can take away that fruit. So,
guard yourself against the little things of life.
Point in Case:
English King Henry the eighth sent a delegation led by the Earl of Wiltshire
to patch up things between England and the Roman Catholic Church. The Earl
went and prostrated himself before the Pope, who was sitting on his mighty
throne, and he prepared to kiss the Pope's toe, which was proper at that
time. The Pope thrust his toe forward to receive the kiss. However, the Earl
of Wiltshire had brought along his dog. The dog misinterpreted the actions
of the pope, and as he saw the foot advancing toward its master, the dog
dashed forward to defend his master. And instead of a kiss, the Pope
received a dog bite to his toe!
The Papal guard was enraged and killed the dog. This enraged the Earl of
Wiltshire who got up in a huff and returned to England. This led the King of
England to break relations with the Roman Catholic Church and to align
itself with the Protestant movement in 1534. In a further move away from the
Roman Catholic Church, King James had the Bible translated into the English
language. I doubt that we would have the King James Bible today, had it not
been for a dog biting the Pope's toe!
Little things can make a big difference. A REALLY big difference.
Thanks to Donald J. Gettys for the story...
2 comments:
Actually, England's break from the Catholic Church was more the result of Clement VII's refusal to grant Henry VIII an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Wiltshire's displeasure was likely over the fact that, had the annulment been granted, Henry would have immediately married Wiltshire's sister, Anne Boleyn. Of course, with the establishment of the Church of England, the marriage was eventually annulled anyway, Henry and Anne were married, and Wiltshire later sanctioned the execution of his sister when she failed to produce a male heir.
Furthermore, the early Anglican church maintained most of the Catholic liturgy and tradition, and it was not until Henry's son Edward assumed the throne that Protestant reform began to take hold in England.
The moral of the story? Always check the facts of amusing anecdotes masquerading as Church history.
Love in Christ,
K.
That's interesting and you may be absolutely right. I was curious as well about it's accuracy, which was why i added the source to the comment. But your point is well taken and i will be more careful in the future.... thanks for the comment.
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