From the desk of Rev. Michelle…

I grew up listening to country music; in my formative years Garth Brooks released a song “We shall be Free.” This song paints a vision of what freedom could look like. It is a song that has stuck with me and impacted on my hopes and dreams for the world and how I view what freedom truly is.

Freedom is a word that seems to appear more frequently in media and political movements. An attack on personal freedom has become a rally call and a tactic used by nationalist movements to stir support. These movements gain influence by demonizing another group, they capitalize on spreading fear and anxiety that the “other’s” presence erodes or encroaches on one’s quality of life and personal freedom. Some of the common rallying points today are freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the freedom to own guns. Division is the name of the game, as these movements cannot flourish unless there is something or someone to work against. Nationalism at its heart is about casting some people as being the problem and claiming that we will only be free when the other is removed or changed.

This way of creating an enemy of others and seeking to eliminate them is not a biblical way of living. In creating another as the enemy there is a denial of the image of God present in every human being and the fingerprints of God found in all of creation. Putting ourselves and our desires ahead of basic respect and honouring the connection we all share, could be the biggest sin of our time. We follow and believe in a God who seeks relationship with us and all creation. God wants us to live freely, but this does not mean with the freedom to say and do whatever we want. A former addict reflecting on his life noted “I was free to make the decisions I wanted and do whatever made me feel good in the moment, but that freedom never brought me peace. I was free but not fully alive. I was enslaved to my own freedom—which was really counterfeit freedom.” The freedom that God desires for us is the freedom to live free from sin. If sin is defined as that which separates us from God, then what true freedom would be is to live as deeply as possible with God.

Paul shows us what biblical freedom truly looks like. In 1 Corinthians 6:12 he writes, “All things are permitted for me,” but not all things are beneficial. “All things are permitted for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. Paul is gesturing towards the truth that while as Christians we can do all things, we see that Christ is our model of what is good and life giving. Freedom comes from living a Christ like life. One thing it has never been: purely individualistic, or self-centered. For Jesus is the one who poured out his life for others and calls us to do the same. And this is why I find the song We Shall be Free a beautiful image of the life our faith calls us to.

The first verse goes like this:

When the last child cries for a crust of bread

When the last man dies for just words that he said

When there’s shelter over the poorest head

We shall be free.

The song continues talking about how we will be free when we are free of racial divides, judging others by their looks, when creation is healthy and in balance, when we can find space for all different views, when nobody is left behind by unfair power dynamic and money and when we are able to accept love in all its forms. Just like Christ, this song moves freedom out of the individualistic level to speak to what freedom looks like on a social level. As we cultivate connection with Christ and participate in the divine life, we can not help but embody these traits and join in God’s dream. Where all are freed for abundant life, where all can thrive.

Loving God, we live in a world where people are shot for what they believe,
Where people are beaten for who they love,
Where violence and division are trying to reign.
Come to our hearts Loving One,
And guide us in your way,
Of peace, justice and mercy.
Help us to proclaim this truth in all our words and actions.
Amen