Mention Books Concering Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World
| Original Title: | Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World |
| ISBN: | 0060759712 (ISBN13: 9780060759711) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Literary Awards: | ECPA Christian Book Award for Contemporary Issues (1982) |
Richard J. Foster
Paperback | Pages: 272 pages Rating: 4.18 | 2191 Users | 140 Reviews
Present Containing Books Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World
| Title | : | Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World |
| Author | : | Richard J. Foster |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 272 pages |
| Published | : | August 30th 2005 by HarperOne (first published October 22nd 1981) |
| Categories | : | Christian. Nonfiction. Spirituality. Religion. Faith. Christian Living. Christianity |
Description In Favor Of Books Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World
As far as spiritual disciplines books go, this is one of the better ones. Foster is (usually) wise enough to know that enforcing a lot of these disciplines and practices as a "law" is legalism. And he doesn't do that. His thesis is simple (no pun intended): simplicity allows us to live in freedom to God (Foster 3). Simplicity exposes our numerous "false selves."How then should one live in simplicity? Here is where it gets tricky. Foster knows he cannot "make" any of his suggestions a law for the Christian life, otherwise he is going beyond the gospel. (Some of the earlier SoJo guys did just that, but to their credit they later retracted their Galatianism). But he does give practical suggestions and many of them are quite good.
Pros:
1. Great section on prayer and fasting.
2. Great section on the False Self (80-81).
3. He is aware that a lot of, say, Ron Sider's earlier proposals probably won't pan out and so he recommends a more balanced approach.c
Cons:
1. Like many connected with Sojourner's Magazine, he accidentally makes the mistake of using big
corporate government to fight big corporate government (181). He advocates multinational institutions to fight multinational institutions.
2. He praises the IMF as a possible rescue organization for the poor. This is ironic since many social justice people criticize the IMF's loan policy as crippling the developing world. So which is it?
3. There are problems with Adam Smith (174), but no one accused Marx and Engels of lifting 2 billion of the world's population out of poverty.
4. He makes the astute observation that spiritual principalities are behind many unjust social structures (164-165). Further, he is correct that these principalities can empower evil multinational corporations. The problem is he paints himself into a corner: he really has no way of fighting these multinational principality structures outside of appealing to something like the UN. This cure is worse than the disease. Further, he says exousiai in Romans 13 means spiritual principalities. That reading really strains the rest of the text, those his larger point holds.
Conclusion:
I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. He is much more balanced than Sider et al. He writes with the wisdom of experience.
Rating Containing Books Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World
Ratings: 4.18 From 2191 Users | 140 ReviewsJudge Containing Books Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World
Foster's care for his reader and their growth is evident in the way he approaches his subject and his books. Freedom of Simplicity is an excellent example of his ability to explain a subject, its history and relevance, all the while taking the time and space to lay a groundwork for application in many areas of life. He does an excellent job at both. His application is built to stretch and guide his reader toward further understanding and a true living out of simplicity. Dividing the book intoSome favorite passages (for my records):"Perhaps one more example of paradoxical tension will be sufficient to emphasize the fact that our journey into simplicity will be as intricate, varied, and rich as human personality itself. I refer to the attractive ability to be single-hearted and at the same time sensitive to the tough, complex issues of life. It is a strange combination and quite difficult to explain, though quite easy to recognize. It produces focus without dogmatism, obedience
I've had this book since I was in college (circa 15 years ago), tried to read it three different times and never got past page 3, and finally this fourth time I had enough get-up-and-go to momentum the shit out of it.Foster never specifically defines "simplicity." One can't really without putting rules on it, which he is very emphatic to say aren't necessarily rules to be followed like a checklist or a law. The things he discusses are important but take different forms for different people. Yet
A Christian faith based guide to Simplicity as a Christian discipline. We are finishing up this study with my Sunday School class, and I have enjoyed it immensely. The only complaint from my class seems to be that Foster chooses for all of his examples the most extreme models of simplicity without enough models, other than some of his own choices, of people living in the modern world and struggling with this issue. Still, Foster begins with by outlining Simplicity as a vital Christian discipline
I was very disappointed by this book: it felt like an outdated compilation of other authors writing, with too many references discussed with far too much brevity -- as a result, the book as a whole came across as topical and almost flippant on some topics.
I enjoyed the comprehensive and practical parts of this book and feel challenged to take some of Foster's suggested steps toward simplicity. The final chapter on Corporate Simplicity lost me a bit but I thought this idea was really interesting to think about in light of the consumeristic world we live in: "Perhaps no work is more foundational to the individual embodying Christian simplicity in the world than our becoming more comfortable in our own skin. The less comfortable we are with
I am currently reading this though I have probably already read it due tom my starting midway and then restarting at the beginning. few of my friends have criticized this book based on the Author's background and while I do not agree with everything Foster says and do wish he had a more academic argument for his position nevertheless I find the book challenging.
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