Freedom is God-given

Religion, that's a way of carrying. They use force violence, to impose the religion. Exodus, chptr. 22, verso 20: "Whoever sarifices to any god ather than the Lord must be destroyed." Monotheisme is a dictatorship. Also the god of Abraham is a dictator. 1 Samuel, chptr 4 verso 8: "Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods?" Schizophrenia of Jezus lay the foundation for Christianity. Matthew, chptr 3 "The baptism of Jezus." Verso 16-17: As soon an Jezus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said,"This is my Son, whom I love with him I am well pleased."" Today we now, this is a fit of madness. So the foundation of religion is the mentally ill of Jezus and Abraham. Religion give a position of power to the Church. The motive for the Church is only power. The religion al over the world, fight for it. It has nothing to do with freedom. Religion is a cultivated delusion.

I find it interesting that those who don't believe in God are posting that their rejection of religion is what gives people freedom. Are you not simply reflecting what Ms. Bean wrote in her article, but from your own point of view? If you are entitled your point of view, is she not entitled hers?

I also want to say that the freedom that she is talking about is one that I feel I have too. This is the freedom to choose the Catholic Church and its teachings, or to reject it. If I didn't believe that it gave me freedom, why would I choose it?

As Christians, we see everyone, regardless of whether they share our beliefs, as valuable because they are made by God. Why this would be a source of vitriol and hate for some, I do not know, but I do not know their life experiences, so I do not judge. What I know is that every person, regardless of race, sex, culture, religion, or upbringing is valued by God and so should be valued by me. In a view where freedom is personal, freedom is enjoyed only by me. In the view that freedom is a gift given to all by God, no matter who they are, it is enjoyed by all around me.
I may not be able to change the world, but by treating everyone with the respect (a respect that seems to be rejected in these posts) I can change my place in the world.

Hi Ms Bean,

So you have no problem with atheists (if you 'honour their freedom to disbelieve') just their attitude to sexual relationships.

You're effectively saying that one can disbelieve in God as long as one is aware that said God 'granted you all your freedoms' (as per the title of your post). A syllogistic contradiction, if ever I saw one.

I live in a society where all this stuff was scrapped 2 generations ago - only the Catholic Church wants to live in the 1950s.

In secular societies all sorts of religions can live alongside each other: Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, you name it; that's why it's called a secular society and I'm lucky enough to live in one.

Regards, Paul.

Hi Ms Bean,

So you have no problem with atheists then (if you 'honour their freedom to disbelieve') just their attitude to sexual relationships.

You're effectively saying that one can disbelieve in God as long as one is aware that said God 'granted you all your freedoms' (as per the title of your post). A syllogistic contradiction.

I live in a society where all this stuff was scrapped 2 generations ago - only the Catholic Church wants to live in the 1950s.

In secular societies all sorts of religions can live alongside each other: Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, you name it; that's why it's called a secular society.

Regards, Paul.

I should add... that I fully support anyone's need or desire to believe in the diety of his/her choice.... up to a point that is... That point? The point where they insist that I believe as well. Just as I would guard their freedom to believe, they should honor and guard my freedom to disbelieve.

What about my freedom to disbelieve in any "god or diety"??? Since I don't believe in him-her-it I can scarcely believe that my freedom derives from it. My freedom derives from my forebears who fought for it and from my own actions to sustain it.

Far more likely that man created "god" in our image (as a way of explaining the unexplainable) than the other way around

So many unfortunately do not know or understand the teachings of the Catholic Church, which can all be supported be the bible, and can be traced back to the earliest writing. the Didache, of the very first church leaders, those that were apostles of Jesus. I learned recently, that in these writings, abortion and contraception were rejected by the Church. It was amazing to learn that these were issues in the Roman society at the time. Thank you Danielle, for proclaiming the beauty and fullness of truth for all mankind found in the Catholic Church. Truth exists regardless of whether on not some one believes.

If God gave people freedom, he completely failed to let the leaders of religious organizations know about it. There is little more repressive than a country that has been controlled by religious leaders, whether Europe before the Protestant Reformation or some Islamic countries today.

I don't believe in any gods because the people who tell me about them say silly things and never bother to look at evidence. Ms. Bean is completely, ignorantly wrong.

Every Concept of "God" originates from some human. I remember a preacher telling a little Blond girl that God gave her golden hair with curls. Aw... come one... that hair came from her genes, not some interfering wand raiser in Never Never Land.

Truth? Neither Ms. Bean, the Pope, Pat Robertson, indeed - ANY spokesman for any religion actually knows who, what or if "God" is. Certainly No person can speak for "God"
Not Nobody....Not Nohow!

Freedom is neither granted nor purchased. It is the inalienable right of every human being, and incursions against freedom are simply crimes, whether perpetrated by individuals or governments.

Calling Freedom a "gift" is subtly insinuating that it isn't a given. It's as stupid as the notion that soldiers' deaths somehow "pay" for freedom.

"It is in the truth that every human being finds true freedom, and it is in the Church that we discover the liberating truth that every human being is created in the image and likeness of God."

That may be your "truth," honey, but it's not mine.

Every single religion on the face of this earth claims to have the one and only "truth." Surely they can't all be right.

The fact that you think your church has the "truth" is fine for you, but your claim means nothing to the rest of us.

Dear Mrs. Bean,

Thank you for your comments. I agree completely. Freedom requires discipline. Freedom without discipline is anarchy and chaos. The Lord gives freedom, but He requires the discipline of following the Commandments with it. Even in a free country like America, we must follow the rule of law, otherwise we'd have chaos.

The Lord gave us freedom so that we could make our decision to love and serve him freely: we are his children, not servants.

Thank you!

Freedom is the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. I spoke out about fifty years ago, and asked a simple question of my Lutheran Pastor. That question was "Why is your God the right one?". He could not give me an answer that didn't condemn at least half the world's population to eternal damnation. Didn't seem right. I told him so. Not long after I was asked to not attend the youth meetings because my questions were disrupting the quest for the truth in god. I exercised my freedom of personal and religious choice to learn as much as I could bear about all religions. They are all the same. They were created by men to explain what they did not yet know. We know a lot more now.

The definition of "freedom" also means a state of not being subject to another's dominance, which translates to "freedom from religion." Today, I choose to exercise that very right.

Ms Bean, in your distant future, you will mature and regret of writing such nonsense and you will be sad. Better start now to put your feet on the ground by: 1) read more about criticism of the RCC; 2) read slowly and with an open mind about criticism to all religions.
There is no blind as one with a closed mind.

The greatest freedom is to realize that religion is a bunch of fairy tales peddled by men who sell this garbage because it gives themselves power, money, and victims to sexually molest. The real freedom comes when you decide to grow up and face reality. Do you honestly believe all of those child-molesting priests believe in your pretend God?

Nanirou: Your brief post is intriguing.

How and why were you searching for truth?

What kind of freedom did you find in the Catholic church?

And of particular interest, from what kind of "bondage beyond immagination" did you escape?

It's a bit scary that Ms. Beam see freedom in the middle east as freedom to "evangelize and liberate Muslim nations." Is she OK with Muslins trying to have the freedom to "evangelize and liberate" Christians in the US? It's wonderful for Ms. Beam that the structure and authority of the Catholic church provide comfort in her life, but it's arrogance for her to assume that everyone needs the particular arbitrary structure that comforts her, and that she has the ultimate answer. But I suppose that's the teaching of her church. All non-Catholics are bound for hell. On what basis can she decide which is true between Catholicism, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, Jainism, etc.?

If freedom is "God-given," why has he taken so long to give it to so many people?

The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster finally set me free from the oppression of the false god of the Bible.

that's odd, I found my freedom when I finally REJECTED the tyranny of the Catholic Church and religion in general.

Thank You Danielle for this article. I found my freedom through my conversion to the Catholic Church. If it was not for my search for truth, I would still be in bondage, beyond imagination.

Religion, and the myth of God, are anathema to freedom. A supernatural despotic dictator. "Believe in me or burn in hell for all eternity". Heaven is no democracy, Ms Bean. Fortunately, it only exists in your imagination.

Ms. Bean get it through your thick head th at there is no sky-daddy, to give you anything. Freedom is the gift to humanity given to itself, with the evolution of secularism.

"It is in the truth that every human being finds true freedom, and it is in the Church that we discover the liberating truth that every human being is created in the image and likeness of God."

Catholic "truth" includes the doctrine of Papal doctrinal infallibility (even though they've changed their minds numerous times) and transubstantiation.

You might as well claim to know the attendance at the angel-pin dance, or that a superior intelligence wrote the gobbledegook known as the Quran.

Danielle Bean said: It is in the truth that every human being finds true freedom, and it is in the Church that we discover the liberating truth that every human being is created in the image and likeness of God.

I think she is saying that "true freedom" is knowing that humans are created in the image of god. This is her belief, but her statement is a faith statement, not something she KNOWS.

If believing that you are created in god's image makes you feel truly free, then power to you. But there is NO EVIDENCE that your belief is true.

As a Catholic, Bean wants tio credit her church as the source of truth and freedom. Other Christians might point out that it is the Bible, not the Pope, that says humans are created in god's image, and that too you may believe or not.

Bean said: Our free will is God's greatest gift and our greatest personal challenge."

Another faith statement, but few if any current reputable social scientists believe humans have absolute free will. All our "free choices" are mediated by a variety of things. And of course if god KNOWS the future, then it is fixed and we have NO freedom of choice. It's all just a game.

I agree with Bean that our apparent free will is a great challenge. We are intelligent and somewhat rational creatures, yet we keep on doing stupid things? Making good decisions, right choices, is often difficult.

She says: "Freedom is not a religious idea. It is a god given gift." I don't know who or what originated the idea of freedom, but it is certainly not a gift from god. It is something you have to work for, sometimes fight for, and it is something we need to share with our neighbors. Execpt on some etherial pland, some faith based level...God has nothing to do with it.