Freedom is a hot topic of discussion. Everyone has her or his own conceptions of it. In today’s post-modern western societies, freedom has been largely associated with a life whereby one can do whatever one has in mind. It is as if freedom is the release of whatever is inside the human person. But what about accountability? Is a person free simply because she or he has desires or projects to fulfil? Can freedom be solely linked to their accomplishments?

For Pope John Paul II, freedom always demands a personal and social responsibility. Real freedom is never static but dynamic. It always seeks new ways of searching and deepening what is true and good in itself. In Crossing the Threshold of Hope, he says that “man cannot be forced to accept the truth. He can be drawn towards the truth only by his own nature, that is, by his own freedom, which commits him to search sincerely for truth and, when he finds it, to adhere to it both within in his convictions and in his behaviour”.

In this inspiring passage the late Pope emphasises the urgent need to seek sincerely what is true and adhere to it with great commitment and consistency. Within the Christian perspective, freedom always motivates and liberates the person from the

tyranny of herself or himself. It is a freedom that leads to and meets the needs of others.

In his other book, Memory and Identity, Pope John Paul portrays Christ as the perfect model and the most outstanding champion of genuine freedom. “Freedom is for love: its realisation through love can even reach heroic proportions. Christ speaks of ‘laying down his life’ for his friends, for other human beings. In the history of Christianity, many people in different ways have ‘laid down their lives’ for their neighbour, and they have done so in order to follow the example of Christ”.

Freedom is golden if it is accountable, responsible and oriented to love others disinterestedly. Other forms of “freedom”, which do not match this ideal, are simply modern day forms of exploitation and oppression. If our society wholeheartedly champions freedom, may it always bring to the forefront accountable, responsible and loving people and present them to us as models to imitate.

Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap

San Gwann