Simplicity

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,

'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,

And when we find ourselves in the place just right,

'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

When true simplicity is gain'd,

To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,

To turn, turn will be our delight,

Till by turning, turning we come round right.

--Simple Gifts, an old Shaker hymn by Elder Joseph Brackett

(the melody is hauntingly beautiful, please take a moment to listen)

Last night Jen and I joined several of our friends in downtown Boston for two one acts at Emerson. Both were by Thornton Wilder, and the first one was actually good (we won't speak of the second). The evening opened up with this famous melody and made me remember just how much I love it.

Perhaps of all the spiritual disciplines I'm most reluctant to truly practice simplicity. I want the freedom that naturally follows from living simply, but I'm afraid of the necessary demands and changes to my life. I seem to have bought into this ideal of affluence and "comfort" as an important part (perhaps the most important part?) of what is proper and good in life. Richard Foster points out that as a society we have developed an insane attachment to things because we lack a divine Center. I'm inclined to agree.

The central point for the Discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first and then everything necessary will come in its proper order. . . . Simplicity itself becomes idolatry when it takes precedence over seeking the kingdom.

Focus upon the kingdom produces the inward reality, and without the inward reality we will degenerate into legalistic trivia. Nothing else can be central. The desire to get out of the rat race cannot be central, the redistribution of the world's wealth cannot be central, the concern for ecology cannot be central. Seeking first God's kingdom and the righteousness, both personal and social, of that kingdom is the only thing that can be central in the Spiritual Discipline of simplicity.

The person who does not seek the kingdom first does not seek it at all. Worthy as all other concerns may be, the moment they become the focus of our efforts they become idolatry. To center on them will inevitably draw us into declaring that our particular activity is Christian simplicity. And, in fact, when the kingdom of God is genuinely placed first, ecological concerns, the poor, the equitable distribution of wealth, and many other things will be given their proper attention.

--Richard Foster on Simplicity in Celebration of Discipline

A singularity of focus on God will put everything else in perspective. I'm sad to say my focus is far from singular, but hopefully every day is a little better than the last.

The practical implications of simplicity are where I hesitate--buying useful things rather than status building ones, rejection of any thing that I'm addicted to, habitually giving things away, refusing the lure of gadgetry, enjoying things without having to own them, using plain and honest speech, refusing to give support to things that oppress other people, and shunning things that distract me from my singular focus on the kingdom of God.

Father, please teach me how to loosen my grip on my life so you can move me to where you want me to be.

An answer from C.S. Lewis

Jen and I were listening to a lecture this morning on The Life and Writings of C. S. Lewis by Louis Markos (good stuff if you want to check it out from the library). I like his line of reasoning, so I'm transcribing it for you.

From lecture 3: Ethics and the Tao

What is the strongest evidence against Christianity? The strongest argument is "look at all the injustice and suffering in the world, how could a good God have created it?" That is really, to me, the best attack on Christianity--why is this world so unjust? But do you know what Lewis says? How do we know our world is unjust? The only way we could know our world is unjust is if we have a just measure to measure it against. Do you follow me here? To put it in C. S. Lewis' words, "a man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line." How do we know that the world is unjust and unfair unless we have some kind of supernatural standard to tell us what is just and what is fair. So, you see, the greatest argument against Christianity becomes an argument in favor of it.