I’ll bet you didn’t know that “austerity’ was named the word of the year by Merriam-Webster in 2010. Wisconsin’s Governor Scott Walker beat opponents of his austerity measures in a recall election yesterday. Does this bode well for austerity, or is it just another battle in the war between ‘austerity’ and ‘stimulus.’ And there is nothing exaggerated about calling it a war.
European leaders are seriously concerned that austerity measures being imposed on Greece could set off civil war there. What’s more, experts are worried it could spread to other European members and the United States.
It seems more evident each day that “lawlessness” is increasing throughout the world. And when people are already hungry and homeless, and are told they need to cut back more, who can blame them for taking their rage to the streets? And when you see that, how long can it be before people take up arms? And if we think it’s bad now, wait until the ‘Restrainer’ is removed and the ‘spirit of lawlessness’ is unleashed (2 Thess. 2:1-9). But don’t worry; when the Holy Spirit makes His exit, so will we!
Last weekend the Spanish took to the streets to protest government austerity measures. Citizen reaction to austerity laws in Greece and Italy earlier this year was the same. In corporate context, austerity means cutting expenses and reducing services. No one likes austerity.
The word “austere” means to be without comforts or luxuries, connoting self-denial, self-discipline, asceticism. This week, the word “austere” took on new meaning when Altha and I visited a Greek Orthodox Monastery in the Sonora Desert. As soon as we arrived, we knew we had entered a set-apart place. We were handed a brochure which said: “Due to the sanctity of this Holy place we kindly ask that you respect the quiet and solitude of the Monastery while on the grounds.” We spoke with a young monk (from Seattle) who explained the monastic lifestyle as one refraining from worldly comforts and pleasures, so that without distractions, they might practice Christian disciplines and meditations to bring them closer to Christ.
Your first reaction may be to dismiss the ascetic lifestyle as aberrant and extreme, but single-minded devotion to Jesus is not something reserved for desert dwellers. Jesus’ life on earth and that of all who followed Him was austere. Jesus demanded singular commitment from His disciples. By leaving their nets and boats—their most valued things in life—they demonstrated the heart disposition Jesus was looking for. Why then, do we suppose, 20 centuries later, that following Jesus demands any less of us?
