“Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own responsibility. By free will one shapes one’s own life. Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity in truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when directed toward God, our beatitude.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1731)

At this time of year, we hear and use the word freedom a lot. We have multiple patriotic holidays, some nationally recognized and others not as popular. We celebrate our forefathers’ fight for freedom from the tyrannical power of the British King George III. We are reminded of our American Civil War and our battle for peace, unity, and freedom from slavery. However, the Catholic Church believes in freedom, too, even if society would suggest differently. We are created with the ability to be free, and are given the gift of free will throughout our lives. As stated in the above quote from our catechism, freedom is power, rooted in both reason AND will. It is a sign of growth, maturity, and righteousness. We are to use our freedoms, our free will to glorify and serve God. God will always be victorious and Mother Church will always be present, because God is almighty, perfect, and powerful; and Mother Church is divinely instituted and under God’s protection. As the popular patriotic hymn states, “Glory, glory, hallelujah! Our God is marching on.” The Church will continue, but it’s our choice to stay steadfast and faithful or to fall away. We are FREE to CHOOSE our path.

Let’s take a look at the definition above and look at the two major defeats of our freedom of modern day. To reiterate, the definition states: “Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own responsibility… it attains its perfection when directed toward God, our beatitude.”  First, the word ‘beatitude’ may trip us up. What does it mean? Per catholicculture.org, it means: Happiness or blessedness as the enduring possession of perfect good.

Looking at our choices, we should ask ourselves, “Do we use our freedom to journey toward heaven? For God?” Many of us would like to answer “Yes!” but I’m sure we aren’t as faithful to that use of the word as we should be. We can use our free will to choose good or evil. Maybe we choose to slander or mock someone, especially someone we dislike, rather than being kind and not allowing ourselves to be tempted by the gossip of others? Maybe we choose to take the easier road, even if it means being dishonest? Or choosing to sleep in instead of going to Mass on a weekend or other holyday? Having free will seems like a simple gift from God. But it’s a responsibility. We are given the ability to choose and God will allow us to stray from Him. This is not because he wants us to run from Him, but because he wants us to freely choose Him. He won’t force us to love our neighbor, our enemies, or to live a life of righteousness. “God in the beginning created human beings and made them subject to their own free choice. If you choose, you can keep the commandments; loyalty is doing the will of God…The eyes of God behold his works, and he understands every human deed. He never commands anyone to sin, nor shows leniency toward deceivers.” (Sir 15:14-15, 19-20) We may think, “As long as I’m happy, I can do whatever I want.” And, although we are given that freedom to choose to live that way, if we are not living for God and our vocation, we are likely to not meet God face to face, or at least not as soon as we may like. 

Now, on the flipside, everyone has their own idea of what freedom means. Freedom has been at the forefront of the news. Freedom of speech, to bear arms; pro-choice vs pro-life; freedom to identify as whatever you choose. These freedoms are human-made. We are not given these specific freedoms from God, though often people see some kind of Divine intervention within their fruition. Although the societal change of the definition of freedom may seem different from our own struggle with how we use our free will in our daily lives, the basis is the same. We are given the gift of free will.

Secular society has, seemingly, chosen to use their free will to go astray from God. Some choose to lead a life of immorality. Some choose to defy natural law. Some choose to do what’s popular and not what is right. Our ancestors have chosen to enslave, to beat, to segregate, to mock, to destroy life. These choices have crippled souls and society. Alas, our free will is ours alone. This is why it is difficult to have the enforcement of laws that impede upon our free will, but without law comes chaos. Herein lies the tightrope. When society’s ideals change to suffice evil, we must, as Christians, be beacons of God’s light in the world.

It’s time to use our freedom, our right and responsibility to use reason and our gifts from God, to live a life worthy of the sacrifice that Chirst made on Calvary. Freedom is a great gift, but it is an important, powerful, and life changing gift. As the old adage says: “with great power comes great responsibility.”