Catholic View Of Freedom

Freedom is an important aspect of Catholic morality. Not to be confused with license, true freedom is greatly dependent on truth and has a profound impact on the human person as a spiritual being. Human freedom separates us from all other beings, allowing us to choose our own path by Christ’s light. The idea of freedom is greatly influential on our lives as followers of Christ. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines freedom as “the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one's own responsibility” (CCC 1731). One of the most important aspects of this definition is that freedom is directly involved with responsibility. As we learn to live freely, we are able to embrace our responsibility, which is a natural part of physical and spiritual maturing. To remove responsibility from freedom is to confuse it with license, or judgment without restraint. License is a dangerous concept in our moral, personal, or social life. Actions that are based solely on the impulses of the moment degrade our moral life and eventually lead to a loss of the common good among members of a community. A society’s very existence is based on the …show more content…
Freedom is reliant on an objective truth, not one based on relativism. Society cannot function without truth, and nor can it function if the truth is fluid and ever changing. Truth provides the basis on which freedom stands and “without truth there is no freedom” (Pell). When one lies, they become shackled to that lie and are forced to maintain deceit. Honest people experience freedom, unlike liars who are enslaved to their falsehoods. Furthermore, when we are true to ourselves we are able to recognize our shortcomings and improve. Truth allows us to understand that freedom is more than simply doing what we want; it is providing ourselves with what we