Chairs blog April 2021: Talking about Freedom

Thoughts on Freedom as We Approach the End of Lockdown

By Anne Dixon

“So when we talk about freedom we talk about simple things that mean we get to live a little more…this kind of freedom is bursting out of the office when you’ve finished your work on Friday night, it’s the end of ‘school night’ restrictions at the beginning of the holidays and it’s the opening of a door to adventures, however small they might be. It’s the longest day, the smell of summer, the brilliant feeling of being physical, of being out of breath, being giddy with excitement, of playing, of having fun. Do you remember that?”
Martin Dorey, p429, The Camper Van Bible

These words, written when the only restrictions we could name were office hours and school night responsibilities, and ‘being out of breath’ was still a ‘brilliant feeling’, sound somewhat naive now, and yet, for me, they still hold a siren’s call. A camping holiday really does seem to offer a kind of freedom.

This was my experience, when my children were small and we packed the family camper van for a six week escape to the sunshine. Sometimes we left on the day the school broke up and returned the day before school started - pushing the holiday envelope to the limit.

I was only following in my parents tyre treads, recreating the times when our family Campervan (initially a 1960's Bedford Dormobile), would rumble, creak and rattle its way to the nearest CPW (usually in Scotland) followed by a week’s camping in the Highlands. We thought we were very adventurous (actually, in this van, we probably were!)

I am not suggesting that this is everyone’s idea of fun, let alone freedom, nor do I wish to sound frivolous. These are genuinely valuable family memories which help to form our families into the loving communities they are. They were an experience of a kind of freedom which lingers to sustain you through more constrained, formalised and responsible periods. In March 2020 we did not know how long we would need to remain with only memories of freedom to sustain us. This is as true for CPW members as it is for camping enthusiasts.

As I write there are increasingly disturbing accounts of the impact of COVID-19 in India and perhaps it seems insensitive to be even considering our own holidays in the face of such suffering. I hesitate, and then recall the recent conversations I have had with friends who are looking forward to emerging from the effects of the pandemic here. Some spoke of an unfamiliar feeling of isolation and loneliness as additional burdens of care were placed upon them and support services were suspended ‘due to lockdown’. Another friend simply said, sadly “It’s all the losses…” referring to the loss of companionship, family occasions and freedom of movement. These experiences, whilst not life-threatening in the conventional sense, were certainly life-draining and ultimately painful, so it is small wonder they were hoping to ‘live a little more’ as restrictions are lifted.

Freedom, according to Harper Collins Encyclopaedia of Catholicism is defined as: the absence of compulsion and determination from anything within or outside a person or persons. In positive terms, it is the ability to weigh possibilities, choose among them, and act on this choice.

Our possibilities were limited, choices were reduced (or even eliminated) action was constrained. We were very far from freedom. How did this happen?

In May 2019 the Law Lord Jonathon Sumption delivered a series of Reith Lectures which explored the extent to which we, as a society, have allowed the law to take over the space once occupied by politics, and suggested that in doing so we have entered into a “quest for greater security and reduced risk”.

In what would later be seen as a prophetic observation, he reminded his audience:

“Every time that a public authority is blamed for failing to prevent some tragedy…it will tend to respond by restricting the liberty of the public at large in order to deprive them of the opportunity to harm themselves. It’s the only sure way to deflect criticism.”

He concluded his first lecture with a warning that the high value which our society places on risk aversion is increasingly influencing the development of UK Law.

“These gradual changes in our collective attitudes have important implications for the way that we govern ourselves. We cannot have more law without more State power to apply it. The great 17th century political philosopher, Thomas Hobbs, believed that political communities surrendered their liberty to an absolute monarch in return for security…We have made a leviathan of the State, expanding and harnessing its power in order to reduce the risks that threaten our wellbeing. The 17th century may have abolished absolute monarchy but the 20th century created absolute democracy in its place.”

In December 2020 another Reith Lecturer, Dr Mark Carney, referred back to Lord Sumption’s comments and what he termed the “Hobbesian bargain”. Dr Carney addressed a virtual audience as the country was now operating under COVID-19 restrictions which limited social gatherings. The bargain had been made. We had surrendered our freedom in exchange for safety, but Dr Carney interpreted this more positively and recognised our individual agency even within the restrictions:

“Many are willing to comply with decrees of a legitimate and trusted power, but such state legitimacy must be continually earned. Compliance will be undercut if concerns develop about fairness, administrative competence or the validity of the strategic objectives themselves. Most people across the globe have supported lockdown measures and massive government spending, even if they perceive little personal risk, and they’ve gone well beyond compliance to active charity. So, we act by delivering food to the vulnerable, becoming NHS volunteers, and sharing the heroism of frontline workers. Authorities, in turn, have drawn on this spirit of altruism by emphasising the good that social distancing does for others.”

In other words, even when our freedoms are limited, we have the power to do good. And now we are entering familiar territory. What does our faith teach us about the meaning and purpose of Freedom? And what is our response?

In Galatians 5:13 St Paul tells us we are called to freedom. We are supposed to be free. Christ’s mission was to ensure that freedom. But what does that mean?

Teresa Forcades I Vila, Catalan Benedictine nun, theologian, physician and political activist, has wrestled with these questions. In her book Faith and Freedom she admits that freedom was not an issue for her as a teenager, but, as she continued her studies in theology she discovered,“how seriously the Biblical God takes human freedom and how deeply involved She is in supporting it.” Faith and Freedom p.9-10.

Using the monastic rhythm of prayer as a structure she explores this topic through the readings from each service. From the writings of Gregory of Nazianz she learns that God is free and human beings are also free and able to refuse their relationship with God. God sustains the capacity for refusal as a loving act because, “Love, God’s essence and the goal of human life, is impossible to conceive without freedom.” P.16.

To understand our capacity for ‘doing good’, even in restricted circumstances, Teresa considers the thoughts of St Augustine, whose writings inspired the Catholic Encyclopaedia entry:

“Choosing with no restraints whatsoever (external or internal) equates ones choice ‘to love’, ‘to doing good’. ’to doing justice’… Only the just, good, loving person is free.”
P23, Teresa Forcades, Faith and Freedom.

As God’s children then, our freedom is not dependent upon a lack of restraints but on our loving, good and just response to God’s invitation. This is life’s goal, this is life to the full.

And the camper van? Well, that just makes it all more fun.

The Sign
Translation of a Mexican poem by Amado Neivo

Talk not to all about things sublime and essential,
Seek the level of her with whom you speak
So as not to humble or distress her
Be frivolous too when you are with the frivolous
But once in a while, as if unsought
Or even thoughtlessly
Drop into their cup on the foam of frivolity
A very small piece from the flower of your dreams.

If it is not noticed, recover it courteously
And always smiling, go your way.
If however someone picks up the small petal,
And examines it, inhales its fragrance
Give her forthwith a sign of discreet understanding
Let her behold one or a few of the marvellous flowers of your garden
Tell her of the invisible divinity which surrounds us all
The open sesame of true freedom.

This is Anne Dixon’s final entry as Chair of CPW. Thank you to those of you who have read and responded to these articles over the last 4 years. It has been a privilege and a pleasure to be able to speak to you in this way.

Anne