In an interview with Richard Foster, Foster mentions his appearance at book-signing events:
“…it’s fun to help people know that the person who wrote “Celebration [of Discipline]” is not some terribly austere ascetic who does nothing but pray.”
Hmm… Well, that’s good to know. Heaven forbid a spirit-bearer actually writing a book on prayer!
I’ve been doing some minor research on George Fox University alum Richard J. Foster. Foster has written several well-known books on spirituality. Well, I don’t have a problem with someone writing books on Christianity (I’m trying to keep in mind more and more St. Theophan’s words concerning the heterodox)… I guess that after leafing through a 4 inch stack of files and articles on the man, I’m seeing a very different side to successful evangelicals. Famous authors, pastors, speakers, theologians are all praised for their ground-breaking, life-enhancing literature. They claim to want to reach people, and yet they’re career is so prolific, it’s like they’re elevated to a new level where success=holiness, and holiness=inaccessible celebrity, exclusive interviews and glossy photographs if you’re the photogenic type-- hey, it certainly helps! (sorry, the links are rather unrelated... I guess I'm trying to make another subliminal point here).
After looking at dozens of images of a grinning, neatly pressed Richard Foster, I stopped and noticed a photo of Elder Paisios, whose picture I added to my desktop’s wallpaper a few weeks back. I couldn’t help but observe the contrasts.
I’m struck by the elder’s face, pointed away from the camera, his eyes gazing off into the distance, unaware of the photographer’s lens. The grace he possesses is not fabricated for the camera. His appearance is shabby, his untamed beard is wiry and white. His eyebrows are arched in a mysterious fashion: concerned and contemplative, compassionate and watchful.
He is a man, a spirit-bearer, who would probably balk if he knew how many publications he has appeared in since his repose—his sayings, his teachings, his guidance and his life. He was an inaccessible man, but not because of his busy career, bustling between book-signings, public speaking engagements and writing projects. He was inaccessible only in location, situated on Mt. Athos where he could work out his salvation in solitude. And yet he welcomed people into his presence, sat with them, talked with them, heard their concerns and gave them council.
I’m not so sure Mr. Foster could afford the time to do the same with his faithful followers. Thank you, but I think I’d rather hear from the austere ascetic any day.
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