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Christian, patriotic truths, justice, real freedom
Freedom is something we all believe is important. The freedom to pursue our lives with liberty and a pursuit of happiness is something the founding fathers of the United States deemed important.
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On July 4th of each year the citizens of the U.S. (we the people) commemorate our nation's birth with a patriotic holiday. We call it Independence Day. We celebrate that our country chose to shake off the shackles of oppression and to establish a government that believed in the importance of liberty.
Like many summer holidays, the true meaning and importance of this holiday gets overshadowed by things like parties, family gatherings and day off from work. Yet, at the heart of these pursuits is the desire to freely enjoy our lives.
Over the years millions have flocked to our shores seeking out a life with this promise – the American Dream. And our country has grown in wealth and influence precisely because we accepted these people. They were not always welcomed with open arms as racism and bigotry have always been around. But the diversity of our population is an asset. Too often we think it is the source of our problems. We think it was alright for our ancestors to find America’s shores but we're not so certain about the new arrivals that we fear will take our piece of American pie.
Easy to Criticize
Today it is easy to criticize what we find wrong with our country, our political and legal system and the lack of equality when it comes to the freedom to pursue “life, liberty and happiness”. Of course, it is right and a duty of each citizen to protest injustice. That was exactly what was happening back in 1776 when the colonists were fed up with the imposition of unfair taxation and the repression they felt from Mother England.
Before we can prophetically speak to the issues of societal freedom I think we must first look at our individual freedom. We cannot separate the two and be fair, but we can't demand changes in the system unless we first look closely at our own situations and face up to the freedoms we have that come with a certain responsibility.
If you are currently living with a certain income that meets your basic needs of food and shelter, if you have the freedom to worship as you please, and if you have done some “inside work” to discover how much you live from your false self (the one that wants to get your own way – even with good motives) and the opportunity to live from your true self (the one that is in union with God and others), then you must face up to the responsibility of being a freedom fighter for God's kingdom.
Now before you may have pick up your picket sign and go marching off to war for social justice, take a moment to look at what Jesus did in his situation in Palestine. He didn't go around demanding that Rome leave the occupied Holy land. He didn't tell his disciples and the Jewish people that they are the only ones who get God's grace. But he did make a point about the many that were persecuted, downtrodden and on the outskirts. I'm not going to toss out a bunch of scripture verses. Go look it up – the message is there in the four Gospels.
An Invitation
Jesus gave an invitation to follow Him in the way of truth, justice and real freedom. He told us that when we receive others we are receiving Him. He gathered small children in His arms and instructed grownups to be innocent and trusting like them. He told us the world would not understand and we would face persecution when we choose this path.
The struggle each of us face is to be honest with where we are with this teaching. This is a daily reckoning and we can't be completely faithful unless we are spending more time looking at ourselves, our faults and our blessings, than we are at pointing out the faults in others or envying the blessings of others.
Fortunately the teachings of Christ and the free gift of God as Helper (the Holy Spirit and Advocate) give us clear cut directions and the grace to do this. I know I can't begin to honestly assess my faults and blessings without this help.
It Starts With You
It does start with each of us – the freedom to choose the way of love, or not. The individual freedoms we have cannot be separated from the societal freedom we should all share. Here is why community is necessary. And community must include everybody! If it only includes those we like or want to be with then we just create little cliques and gather power and all of a sudden we are in the role of oppressor (even when we don't think so).
Today followers of Christ who are true believers in the equal spreading of God's grace can be the real “Freedom Fighters” in the world. We can do it from a position of humility and service. We can be passionate and compassionate. We can see Jesus in others and ourselves; we can rejoice that God hasn't reserved His grace only for the righteous, but also for the sinner. Doesn't that about cover everyone?
This is a new freedom. It is the freedom to let go of past hurts and resentments. It is freedom to be a giver and not just a taker. It is a powerful freedom that oddly springs from our acceptance that we are powerless as individuals to change the world, but able to tap into the power of a profoundly loving, merciful and just God that only asks that we accept our unity with Him. God is the source of love and that is a very freeing thing.
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