Foxes and Hedgehogs

Several years ago a friend gave me a book of essays. One of those essays was Isaiah Berlin's essay, The Hedgehog and the Fox. The essay is a discussion of Leo Tolstoy's theory of history. The fragment used for the title is from the Greek Poet, Archilochus. He states, "The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing."

Berlin masterfully used this to build on the idea that writers and thinkers only fall into one of two categories: hedgehogs, who view the world through the lens of a single defining idea, or foxes who draw on a wide variety of experiences and for whom the world cannot be boiled down to a single idea. Berlin asserts that Tolstoy postulates in way that makes it difficult to put him in either camp. After reading the essay in full, I was lead to believe that Tolstoy knew he was a fox, but spent his life working towards that of a hedgehog.

For many years I have dwelt on this metaphorical concept in thought and prayer and have arrived at some thoughts. These I share with you now for no other reason than to expose my flawed thinking and my journey of thinking in all ways Christ.

1. We, as Christians, ought to be hedgehogs for one simple reason: Christ. He is "the big thing" that governs all of creation, therefore it is Jesus Christ that ought to be our big idea, and that which motivates us in all things.
2. We are by nature foxes because we are fallen and sinful. Every selfish desire that we employ exposes our fox-like nature.
3. We live in world of foxes run by foxes. Postmodernism has turned this world into a fox's lair and given permission to celebrate those traits that are fox-like: selfishness, inconsistent worldviews, and pride just to name a few.

To further expose the flawed nature of my mind, I now take these concepts that I have applied individually and apply them collectively. You would think that to apply these concepts in a collective way would be problematic. That has proven not to be the case.

I believe that most schools are foxes in nature because they believe that is their natural state. Instead, I propose that the more natural state of a school is that of a hedgehog. In every way educationally, to be a hedgehog is to be in a better position to educate and disciple students. No one person or one entity can be all things to all people; each must decide what to do well and work to do it exceptionally well. This is why we at Westminster Christian Academy strive to do all things in Christ and to do all things with excellence; we believe that what we do is dictated by a Holy God, and that He calls us to do it in the very best way.

As we all go forward day by day, may we do so not as the fox that scurries from one urgent thing to the next; instead, may we do so as the hedgehog and go forward with resolve and perseverance to always do things in Christ and with excellence.