Freedom is the catchword of our time. Embracing an ideology that respects no limits or absolutes, society is now culturally awash in radical pluralism – a pervasive intellectual impulse that rejects the idea of universal truth. The only universal truth, it is said, is that there is no universal truth; there are only interests, felt needs, and ambitions, and the quest to satisfy them all. Expediency, not morality, is the highest norm of public conduct.
The mass media are starting our kids early on this path. They promote an approach to education that encourages students to learn by doing and to acquire knowledge by freely discovering it for themselves. But this renders children ridiculously unfree because it gives them false sense of independence. Through computers, TV shows, and other gadgets, the child’s environment is manipulated to give the child the illusion that his achievements are all his own. Often, this approach leaves students undisciplined, allergic to failure and rigorous study.
As a democratic nation, we think we are free because we are guided by the rule of law. But is it really the law that rules us? Or have we become too dependent on lawyers, many of whom have evacuated moral judgment from legal questions? They have embraced a relativism that is incoherent and a hindrance to decision-making. With conflicting interpretation of legal norms, they unwittingly suggest that at the heart of liberty is pure choice or subjective interpretation.
Democracy exists where reciprocal bonds, governed by truth and justice, link people to one another. Freedom is not the liberty to do anything whatsoever, but the liberty to do what is good. The goal of freedom is the achievement of what is objectively good for oneself and society. We cannot desire this good if we are ignorant of the truth. We cannot love that which we do not know.
Today, invoking ad nauseum the so-called "high wall’’ of separation of Church and State, many politicians in government are openly hostile to the truth-claims of faith and moral righteousness. They declare that religion must confine itself entirely to the private sphere. In effect, with the help of the powerful media of communications, government is taming the Church by making it appear boring and inconsequential. They ignore the fact that the political edifice of liberty and equal rights stands on the belief in a Sovereign Power higher than the State.
After the September 11 bombing in New York, a woman was asked on TV: "Why did God allow this thing to happen?’’ She replied: "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we’ve been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. Being the gentleman that He is, I believe He has backed out. How can we expect God to protect us if we want Him to leave us alone?’’
The words of Jesus: "The truth will make you free" (Jn 8:32) remains our best guide in the exercise of authentic freedom. Presumably, all of us are searching for the truth. But as long as we ignore Him who is "the way, the truth, and the life’’ (Jn 14:6), our quest for liberation will lead to a bitter disillusionment. We shall remain so free and yet... so lost.
