FEAR OF OPINIONS

Matthew 14:5 And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.

Proverbs 11:14 reads ‘In a multitude of counsel, there is safety. It is therefore appropriate to run certain ideas through the lenses of others. However, the intention here is to receive counsel and that is an important point to note.

The Gospel today highlights one story about Herod, the tetrarch, and the main point of interest was his intention to put John the Baptist to death. The only thing that held him back was his fear of the people’s opinion of John. We can place this alongside the story of Saul who offered burnt offering while waiting for Samuel   “because he was afraid of the people” (1 Sam 15:24). This action of his birthed the popular statement “obedience is better than sacrifice”.

Fear of the opinions of others fuels either: “paralysis, leading to inaction” or “pressure, leading to impulsive action”-  neither is beneficial.

#sly