“Freedom is not free.” I cannot begin to count how many times I heard this phrase growing up in an Army family, in the deep South, in the midst of huge global shifts, especially after 9/11. It was a phrase used to articulate the cost of American lives. This was a phrase a dear high school friend used as he enlisted in the Air Force. It is a phrase I heard as my parents turned on the nightly news. It was a phrase country artists and figureheads would use time and time again to comment on war and conflict abroad in which the U.S. was involved. It is a phrase that comes to mind this holiday week.
From a Christian perspective, our own freedom does not cost us anything, yet it takes a lot of work. Our freedom as people of faith comes from our God who created us. We are liberated individuals because of our relationship with the Holy One. We know our worth comes from God because Psalm 139 says, “you are marvelously made.” We are free because Christ sacrificed his life to draw us closer to the Divine. Through this act we are afforded God’s grace, “God’s favor towards us, unearned and undeserved” (BCP p. 858).
Yet, although as Christians, freedom does not cost us anything, it can be difficult to live a liberated life my friends. We live in a world that is controlled by powers and principalities that try to subject us and encourage us to hide our true selves. Maybe you have felt like your authentic self has been judged in this world because of your socio-economic status, race, gender, country of origin, or so many other multifaceted, intersecting identities. We live in a world that attempts to enslave our true selves and encourage us to fit a particular mold. Yet, that is not of God. For we are made in the Divine’s image and likeness which we derive from the Holy One. We are free through Christ Jesus.
Freedom does not cost us anything because we were created for such liberation, but freedom does take a lot of work. It takes immense emotional work to know who we are and whose we are in this world. It takes constant deconstructing of lies we have been taught about ourselves–how our self-worth is wrapped up in how much money we make, our job title, our social media content, or how others disrespect our very existence. Freedom is a daily choice, and the more we choose our own freedom, the more we are called to participate in the liberation of all of God’s creatures.
Freedom takes work. It takes resistance to the status quo. Freedom was not automatic upon the signing of the Declaration of Independence, upon the gathering of the first Continental Congress, or upon the end of the American Revolution. Freedom takes work. It took until June 19, 1865, for the enslaved people of the South to experience the bold declaration of the Emancipation Proclamation. It took until August 19, 1920, for these United States to ratify the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote. It took until 1938 for the establishment of a minimum wage and a forty-hour work week.
None of these events are ancient history, for in all regards we still have work to do, for the freedom of all peoples of this land. Thank God that our freedom comes from Jesus Christ. May we as his followers continue the good work of the continued liberation of all of creation.
God’s abundant peace and steadfast love,
Sarah+
The Rev. Sarah Dunn
Associate Rector
Photograph by: Miguel Bruna via Unsplash
Published July 4, 2024