God, Country, and the Freedom to Choose

 

“You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

— John 8:32

I was remembering how two moral concepts—loyalty and service to my country, and dedication to God and the Catholic Church—were so strongly inculcated during my early years at St. Anne School. That recollection made me realize why the constitutional precept of the separation of Church and State—a dubious interpretation of the First Amendment—still evokes such an allergic reaction in me. My country, in a sense, is “my mother,” just as God is my “Father” (capitalization asserted out of reverence for Him). In my conscience, they are inseparable.

But is my dedication to God and Country the result of early indoctrination—the American Catholic equivalent of ideological conditioning—or have I indeed developed an informed conscience, a sense of right, wrong, morality, loyalty, and faith by which I freely regulate my behavior?

I believe Free Will is a gift from God. I choose to believe. It is the fact that I make a choice that affirms I am exercising my free will. Even writing this very essay—examining and questioning that choice—is further proof. If I am conscious enough to ask whether I believe freely, then am I not also intellectually free to decide my path? Cogito, ergo sum. I think, therefore I am.

But this dilemma touches on deep philosophical ground and deserves closer examination.

Are we not taught the “morally correct” answers during our formation in school—provided with what is called an informed conscience by a presumed moral authority? Would you deny Christ as Peter did? Would you denounce God to avoid the sword? Would you betray your country to save your life? Are you Benedict Arnold or Nathan Hale? Catholic school certainly had its scary days!

Yet despite that formation—or indoctrination, depending on one’s view—do we not still possess free will? Are we not capable of discovering courage within our own consciences? Can we not choose the righteous path not merely because it is expected or taught as “morally correct,” but because we know, deep within, that it is the way of truth?

I believe we can. And when we do, it is the clearest sign of our freedom.

To God alone, the Author of Freedom — Marc Ernest Brodeur