January 7 – Simplicity
Jay
Miller
Read: Isaiah
52:13-53:2
You would be
hard pressed to find someone in Oregon, Washington, or Idaho today who would
not on some level support the mantra, “Simplify, simplify.” People want to live
simply today, whether out of a desire to unplug, be green, or generally have a
less hectic life. One might think that the Friends testimony to simplicity is
all the rage.
But being
"all the rage" does not accurately describe Christian living. It was
often when big crowds began following him that Jesus withdrew from the public
eye to remember what he was all about. Which is why it may be helpful for
Friends to remember that the testimony to simplicity was originally a call to
plainness.
This very
quickly changes the conversation, for the word plain is not nearly as cute as
the word simple. Simplicity is beautiful and compelling. Plain is just . . .
plain.
Yet for our
spiritual fathers and mothers, plainness was an important discipline. It
testified to a truth so powerful that the world demeaned it with insult, and
has now co-opted it with trendiness. But there is a depth to plainness the
world cannot realize, because plainness is not primarily an absence of
adornment (or technology, trash, and time commitments), but the presence of
peace. It is the radical presence of the Living Christ.
The world
scoffs at the Suffering Servant, because it will not accept his presence, and refuses
to see his beauty. It is beauty that does not seek recognition because it knows
itself as already recognized. It is a beauty that does not seek to be desirable
because it knows itself as already desired. It is a beauty of a young plant
coming out of dry ground--tough, tender, and content with this plain truth:
that it holds the Life which gives life to all things.
Queries:
Could my testimony to
simplicity also be seen as a testimony to plainness? If so, how? If not, why?
Is the ground of my
Christian witness contentment in and surrender to Christ’s Presence?
Does simplicity free
me to live without the need to be recognized,
and help me to serve
others genuinely?
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