What Does It Mean To Be Free Essay

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Freedom can be defined as the power of the will that gives man the ability to direct himself towards his final end by the choices that he makes. Freedom comes along with the idea of law. It is known that God placed an order of commandments (or laws) that were meant to be followed by human kind. It is believed that God linked law and man’s final end by natural law and the divine law given to Moses. It is said that man’s law leads to natural law which leads to the Divine law. These laws fulfilled the Decalogue and Promised Land with the Sermon on the Mount and the Kingdom of God. The relationship between the laws set in place by God and the freedom of man to follow these laws from the Catholic standpoint will be expressed. In doing these different …show more content…

To continue on the idea of freedom, St. Augustine stated that “the beginning of freedom is to be free from crimes… such as murder, adultery, fortification, theft, fraud, sacrilege, and so forth. Once one is without these crimes, one begins to lift up ones head toward freedom. But this is only the beginning of freedom, not perfect freedom. This previous statement explains the beginning of freedom. Freedom is shown through this statement from the Catechism as the following of the laws put in place. Lowery goes on to explain true freedom in that, “true freedom, or authentic freedom, is the proper use of our free will and political freedom. It is freedom that comes from having aligned ourselves with the true and the good. Freedom means, ironically, being ‘bound’ to the truth.” Being bound to the truth also means being bound to God, because God is the truth. When man does not kill, he is brought closer to freedom and this proves a positive relationship between law and freedom. In Veritatis Splendor, it is stated that “Jesus says…if you wish to enter into life keep the commandments.” We are to follow the word of God. When man starts to follow the simple laws he brings himself closer and closer to God. It is amazing the feeling one can get when everything is going right in one’s life and they can feel a special connection with

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