Liberty?
Freedom is not a Scarce Resource
Watching Christian social media can be very interesting. Especially that of white evangelicals. It can be amazing how very upset that group can get over things. But the more I watch I have realized a few truths. Some are not surprising, but others are very much surprising.
First, most American evangelicals claim to love the American system of laws of liberty. But, they don’t really believe in the personal liberty of the constitution. Instead they believe in a liberty in which their cultural assumptions are the primary cultural reality. We’ll come back to this, but I fully believe that the liberty as expressed in the U.S. Constitution is very different than the liberty found in Christian scripture.
Second. this group also believes in the myth of scarcity to a frightening degree. From capitalism to the rights of people within the United States, they believe in scarcity of ideas and freedom. This works out in the attitude that if someone enjoys a freedom that the particular Christian group disagrees with that somehow Christian freedom is reduced. A glaring example of this is the constant need to hammer on cultural celebrations. The reactions to Pride month, Juneteenth, non Christian religious holidays, and general freedoms is harsh.
Just because you don’t understand it or agree with something does not make it illegal or wrong in a societal sense. But these reactions are actually funny to me. In addition to acting as if cultural divergence is to be forcefully squashed, they also harp on and on about the evils of the world and the culture of the world. So why act surprised and outraged when the world acts like you claim it to be (at least in your mind). It is an eye rolling moment to see Christians whine about things they don’t understand or agree with being enjoyed by human beings who enjoy the same freedoms that Christian do. Oh, and criticism is not persecution.
The many fears of “sharia law” are ironic. First, no one is trying to implement Sharia in the United States. Second, does anyone remember “blue laws?” Those were essentially Christian versions of Sharia. Stores were not allowed to open on Sundays during traditional Christian worship times, but no other religion was granted that privilege. Part of the decline in church attendance in the United States can be attributed to the church having to compete in the realm of time.
The ultimate irony is what Christian liberty represents. The scriptures are awash with the word liberty. But what is liberty for the Christian? In the letter to the Galatians, liberty is the freedom from legalism, the freedom to love, and the freedom of being a child of God. In Corinthians it is freedom from participating in oppressive systems and freedom from fear of those systems. For Jesus it is the freedom to live an everlasting quality of life without the fear of the systems that harm. It is the freedom to see the marginal as children of God.
Liberty in Christ is the liberty/freedom from fear. Freedom from fear of sin and fear of death. Freedom from the fear of different ideas. It is true liberty as it is freedom from doing everything on our own. Liberty is freedom to not be consumed by that which is not Christ. Liberty (like love, mercy, and grace) is not a scarce resource. Liberty is everlasting in God’s steadfast faithfulness.
Yes, the liberty promised in the United States Constitution is often at odds with the liberty of Christ. BUT, it is not something to be torn down by Christians. We have liberty to live into the liberty of Christ. Therefore, others have the same liberty to live, worship, or not worship as they please. Our liberty is not threatened by the liberty of the one who does not believe, look, vote, or behave as we do.
Why is this important? Because the church often acts as if the liberty of those outside the church harms the liberty of Christians. Liberty does not shield you from discomfort or from seeing things with which you disagree. When we act that way, we look ridiculous.
How does this potentially harm the church? Well, when we throw fits because people live in their own liberty. Or, we make claims that our liberty is diminished by someone else enjoying liberty. We look like fools, and not in the way Paul would use that word for believers.
A good example is the attitude of white Christians toward celebrations like Juneteenth. The criticism is often something, something - division. Sure, if you believe that celebrating the end of slavery in the United States is divisive. What if we instead took a moment as Christians and reminded people that Christians stood for abolition against Christians who defended slavery? We can celebrate as one.
But let’s look at something way more controversial. In the U.S., June is Pride Month for our LGBTQ+ citizens. Whatever you think about Pride in this context, our country’s freedom allows people to celebrate. There are some very good pastoral responses by those who minister in spaces where Pride is celebrated. But there is also a very good pastoral response in general; if you do not want to celebrate something you do not agree with, then don’t celebrate. When Christians try to disallow others freedom, we appear to be hypocritical. Freedom for me but not for you in other words.
My state has claimed June as “Nuclear Family Month” with the claim that the nuclear family is the bedrock of American society. The problem with that claim is that the nuclear family is actually one of the phenomenons of the industrial revolution which began the erosion of many things nostalgic to those looking back. The extended family was the picture of stability prior to the ripping apart of generational togetherness into small units.
Politicians are also now taking extreme positions based upon their Christian assumptions. A candidate for governor in my state is arguing that he can outlaw Islam in the state because of a phrase in the state constitution speaking of the freedom to worship “Almighty God” as one wishes. I love the dismissal of the First Amendment of the United States which would take precedence anyway, but just think of the arrogance and hatred that causes one to refuse people to worship as they wish.
The worst part of all of this is the fact that we cannot even engage with anyone who disagrees with us without yelling at one another. Do we really love the tenets of the liberty accorded in the United States, or do we want a theocratic version of America. Christian Nationalists argue for the latter. The former is a much more generous reality. In the end, the point should be that your freedom never endangers my freedom in a context where freedom is not scarce or afforded only a privileged few.