“Simple” is an adjective. I learned from Mrs. Contrarez in 4th grade (she was this obese woman who always wore a dress and pantyhose stretched tight over the folds of fat on her legs – not a pretty sight – and was prone to throw erasers at us) that adjectives modify nouns. An adjective does not stand alone, it is dependent. In our case, I suppose the noun would be life. Simplicity is a certain type of life.
What does it mean to be simple? I am all for it, if it does not mean that I need to sell my XR 650. Am I leading a simple life if I don’t have a dog (they are such a hassle) or cable TV? Is simple just having less than my peers? Does it mean being simpler than I am right now? Or does it mean something more radical, like Ghandi, Mother Teresa, monks, Indian gurus, Amish, and Shakers?
On dictionary.com (my source for truth), simple has 24 definitions. Five of them relate to being stupid – I don’t think that is what we are getting at. Eight of them are specific to a particular academic discipline – not that. Six of them relate to plain, easy, not complex – ehhh. Five of them relate to some interesting things: modest, sincere, humble, unpretentious, single – hmmm. A modest life. A sincere life. A humble life. An unpretentious life. An uncluttered life. A life with a single, clear, or easy focus.
Okay, but why would this kind of living be desirable? What’s wrong with a life that is packed full, ambitious, intentional, and grand? I don’t know yet. That may be part of the problem, I don’t know. Maybe the knowing can only come through experiencing it. But how? Can you experience the benefits by becoming incrementally more simple or will it require an all or nothing plunge into radical simplicity?
It seems clear that Jesus’ way is simple. He said that a disciple should sell everything and give to the poor (Luke 12:33). Do we need to trust him in this and just do it or should be engage in some moral reasoning to come to our own conclusion? It might save time to just obey, but if it is truth, then it should have an understandable moral basis. We are, after all, moral agents. He made us that way. We may miss it if we just stay in the moral reasoning mode, though. Maybe too much moral reasoning will make the simple too complex.
So, I will continue with my moral reasoning. I will also begin to ask how I could start living life more simply so that I could come to know. I don't think I will be taking the plunge into a Gandhi-like lifestyle anytime soon. You don't need to put me in the hot seat to grill the reason out of me. I'll admit it, I don't have enough faith. I am the rich man walking away sad (only I'm old).
1 comment:
Nice post Mark,
Did Jesus come to model simplicity? Was Jesus’ life simple? He was busy; traveling, working, preaching, teaching, healing and loving. It doesn’t seem that simple really. On the other hand he wasn’t burdened by the heavy baggage of material things that would distract him from his father’s purposes.
As I consider some of the attributes of Jesus, the following come to mind; compassionate, obedient, passionate, sincere, humble, & footloose (as in lightweight or mobile). The last one touches on the simplicity, but without the others, simplicity seems to loose its purpose.
Clearly, simplicity is not the goal; however, I do see it as a path to becoming what I want to become but cannot seem to become. If we decide to live a more simple life, I hope that it is because we want to become more obedient, passionate, sincere & humble.
The question is; can we live a more simple life by making gradual changes? For me and most everyone I know, if we take one step toward simplicity we find ourselves two steps back by the multitude of readily available indulgences (technology, media, hobbies etc), that seem to be crammed down our throat by not only our society but even our churches. Could this be because our trust in God is weaker than the grip society has on us? Do we lack trust because we fear we will lose the idols we cling to? Do we focus on the Grace Jesus provides to subvert the other fear we have remembering when Jesus spoke of the camel and the needle? Are we caught between two fears that paralyze us? I am.
I long to be free from the fears, but how? The change needs to be radical. I need to others to join me (sounds like more lack of trust when I think of it). I am not sure where to start. Some would say study the word and meditate. Others would say pray. Still others have the advice of practicing compassion. I am, am, & am. What would Jesus say?
Is it time for a temporary separation from that which binds me so that I can be overcome with trusting in God? What does that look like? Let’s talk about it more.
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