As the 250th anniversary of our country takes center stage, we could ask: What is it about the United States of America we’re celebrating? Many things, of course. But at the top of the list for most people is probably freedom.
We were founded on the idea of the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Today, 250 years later, freedom is arguably the highest value in our culture, or at least one of our very highest values.
Let's look at what freedom really is. I have the opportunity to teach seventh-graders preparing for Confirmation and high school seniors preparing for life. The concept of freedom comes up in both classes.
Teachers know that students will inevitably forget a lot of things when the school year is over. But I would venture to guess, every teacher has a small handful of core lessons he or she insists the students never forget. For me, one of those lessons is what freedom really is. (Yes, this will be on the test, and yes, it's worth a lot of points. It's that important.)
Is freedom simply the ability to do whatever you want, say whatever you want, think whatever you want, believe whatever you want, live however you want? Most people would probably say yes, within certain parameters, of course.
You can do or say whatever you want as long as you don't hurt someone else. But the fact is, this is a very shallow and misleading notion of freedom. If an alcoholic is over age 21, he is perfectly free to drink himself to death, but that doesn't sound like freedom to me.
True freedom is rooted in objective reality. For example, you are not free to jump off a building because human beings do not have the ability to fly like birds. This is an objective fact. True freedom is the ability to know, desire, and pursue what is truly good.
Let that sink in. To be free is, first of all, to know what is truly good. For example, I know that fruit is better than donuts in the sense that fruit will contribute to better health, which contributes to more contentment and happiness in the long run.
However, there immediately arises a problem. I may know fruit is better, but I greatly prefer donuts. True freedom means not only knowing what is good, but desiring it.
How can you change your desires to want something good and not want something bad (as in the case of trying to overcome a bad habit)? It is a slow, gradual process that takes effort and God's grace, but it is possible to reshape our desires to conform to what is truly good for us.
In fact, it's more than possible. It is incumbent on us for our own good and the good of others to work to conform our desires to the good. And it works. For example, when people build a habit of eating healthy, after awhile, they have no appetite for unhealthy food (so I'm told).
Finally, real freedom means not just knowing and wanting what is good, but being able to pursue it, free of obstacles or constraints.
I am not an expert on American history, but I am confident the Founding Fathers of our country envisioned a society that promotes true freedom: the ability to know, desire, and pursue the good. As we celebrate 250 years, we pray that every future generation will learn this fundamental lesson.
By Father Kevin Bobbin, Pastor of St. John the Baptist, Pottsville, and Chaplain of Nativity BVM High School, Pottsville and the Diocesan Homeschool Community.
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