Biblical Minimalism is living life according to the Bible while leaving consumer culture behind for minimalism.
We’re All Looking for Happiness
Happiness. It’s something we are all searching for in life. As Catholics we believe that the Bible is the inspired, true word of God. The lifestyle that we are all called to in the Bible looks very different than the lived experience of modern society. We are told in the Gospels that living a life of Biblical Minimalism is what allows us to draw ever closer to Christ. Before we look further into what the Gospel itself says, let’s see how modern society and secular minimalism promise happiness.
How to be Happy According to Society
Happiness is something we are sold constantly through the advertisements that are omnipresent in our modern society. We are told we will be happy if we buy the household goods they are selling. We will be happy if we buy the food they are selling, we will be happy if we buy into the consumer culture that permeates everything around us.
The advertisements are constantly pushed at us and become ever-increasingly intrusive because they work! We buy things that we see and we hope that with these new purchases comes happiness.
How to be Happy According to Minimalism
Minimalism also promises happiness. The concept preaches that we have to reject falling for a consumer culture and purge our lives of excess goods. Minimalism says that we will achieve happiness when we have fewer things to care for and therefore have more time to enjoy. It says that more possessions do not equate more happiness. Minimalism suggests happiness comes from having the right number of possessions: neither too many nor too few.
How to be Happy According to Catholicism
Since the founding of the Catholic Church at the Last Supper, followers of Jesus have renounced the “happiness” that the world preaches. At her heart, the Catholic Church is a hospital for souls. She embraces the poor and suffering, and through her ministrations Jesus helps ease heavy burdens.
Throughout her history, the Church has held up certain individuals as examples of great holiness. We know these men and women as the Saints (capital S). They show us how to be happy according to Catholicism, but this path to happiness looks extremely different from the path the world touts, and it is more nuanced that that of minimalism alone.
Biblical Minimalism
One of the best examples of minimalism in the bible is found in Matthew 19:21. Here Jesus says to a man seeking eternal life: “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me”. The Catholic Minimalist cannot stop at only the first part of this verse: “go, sell what you have”. We must fulfill all three exhortations:
- Sell what you have
- Give to the poor
- Come, follow me
In doing all three steps Jesus tells we will have “treasure in heaven”. We know that Heaven is perfect union with God, and therefore prefect happiness. In following these three steps we can find happiness in this life and the next. This is a hard calling, no doubt. The man Jesus was speaking to in the bible did not follow Jesus’s words and “went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions” (Matthew 19:22).
Biblical Minimalism in the Saints’ Lives
St. Robert Bellarmine
Saint Robert Bellarmine is known for pawning his goods to give alms to the poor. Among other things he sold his cardinal’s ring, his mattress, and the hangings from around his bed were given as clothing to those who needed it. He recognized that all the finery that surrounded him would serve the poor much better than the walls. St. Robert Bellarmine is recognized as a Doctor of the Church for his significant theological contributions. He took a special interest in the poor, lived an austere life, and died in poverty.
St. John Vianney
St. John Vianney lived in France during the French Revolution. He was a parish priest in the small village of Ars. It was there that he ministered to the people, with a special emphasis on hearing confessions. This holy priest only owned two cassocks, and preferred to wear the more worn of the two. If he were gifted a new one he would give it away. He knew that he could only wear one outfit at a time. In order to give to the poor he sold all of his personal property.
Happiness in Having Less
Both of these Saints lived long before the modern concept of Minimalism was popularized, but both found happiness in having less. They key for them, and for us, is not just giving away our possessions, but giving them away to make time and room in our lives for a closer connection with God.
Saints Robert and John did not give away their possessions to live a life focused solely on their pleasure and experiences. They gave away their possessions because it is what Jesus calls all of us to.
What Will Living Out Biblical Minimalism Do For Me?
Biblical minimalism for the Catholic serves to open our minds and hearts to the Lord. It gives us more time to spend with Him in prayer and softens our hearts to those around us. Biblical minimalism is not an end in itself, but a pathway to the heart of Jesus.
I encourage you to spend some time with the Lord asking him what you should minimize from your life. Ask Him who might benefit from possessions that you no longer need in your life or that are keeping you from a deeper relationship with Him. I would love to hear in the comments what the Lord is asking of you!
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