Service at All Saints Church 25th August - 11am
I used to keep chickens in my garden and to be honest, I don’t find them to be the nicest of creatures! The term ‘pecking order’ originated from the bossy hens who want the best of everything (food, roost etc) and who will beat up the others in order to get it, terrorising the lower status birds into corners or drawing blood. They are also prone to attacking and even killing a sick or injured bird and certainly won’t allow a ‘newbie’ into the group.
I was reminded of their distasteful character traits when watching the recent violent mobs on the streets of our towns and cities and wondering what distorted mindsets lead to such riotous behaviour.
When we are young there is a strong pull to be like everyone else, at least everyone in our immediate social circle or peer group. We look to see what everyone else is wearing, which clubs they go to, what music they like etc etc. Being different - in any way - is a big no, no. It’s the most cited cause for being bullied.
By contrast, as we move up through school or college and first enter the job market, we realise that in order to succeed we need to stand out from the crowd; we need to be a little different, a little better than the rest, if we want to get the best! But at the same time, we don’t want to lose our popularity, so we are constantly looking around for like-minded people - people who speak our language, people who pose no threat but can help us climb the ladder so to speak. The fear of losing one’s pecking order often leads to trampling down the underdog.
Not uncommon behaviour it would seem. But the Bible warns against mistreating those who are not part of our ‘tribe’; it’s called discrimination, racism and prejudiced behaviour. Bullies who show no mercy to others will have no mercy shown to them.
Sadly the worst cases of bullying hens were eventually removed from the coup.
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