During these times of stay-at-home orders from state and local officials, one might ask the question, “are we still free?” To answer that question, let us first explore the concept of freedom.
Ernest Holmes, in his book “The Science of Mind,” wrote “The Law is a law of liberty, but not a law of license.” He was referring to the spiritual laws that we cooperate with to manifest what we want to experience in life. It is a law of liberty because we are free to create and experience unlimited good in our lives. It is not a law of license because we must conform to the ways of the laws, or the nature of how life works. In others words we are not at liberty to do or have what we want unless it conforms to the nature of life and how things work.
I have found that freedom carries great responsibility. When there is no freedom, someone else tells us what to do and we just follow. When there is freedom, we ourselves must choose what we shall do with this great power.
Do laws and orders imposed by officials curtail our freedom? It depends. If it is an authoritarian government perhaps our freedom could be curtailed in some way. If it is a democratic form of government, wherein we participated in electing those creating the laws and wherein we have agreed that this is the way we want to be governed, perhaps our freedom is not curtailed. In either case, our true freedom is not curtailed because, if nothing else, we are still free to think as we wish.
Even in the realm of actions, we are still free to act as we please, albeit with potential consequences. In this way we are still at choice. And if we find the laws to be oppressive, we can choose to protest, work toward changing them, or agree to go along anyway. These are all choices we could make because we are free, and no one can ultimately give or take away freedom.
For some, the idea of freedom connotes that we should be able to do whatever we want, and no one should be able to tell us otherwise. But this is not how nature works. Sure, we can do whatever we want, but if we do not comply with nature, there are consequences. We can jump off a building if we choose, but it does not exempt us from the results of gravity. We are free to do it, but a wiser choice would be to honor nature.
In America, one could say that freedom is our greatest and most celebrated value. And freedom is often connected to individuality and our ability to each chart our own course. In times of a pandemic, this can lead to deadly results because it implies that we have no effect on each other, and it does not fully consider our inherent interdependence.
With the COVID-19 virus, one’s decision to not wear a mask, or to not keep their distance from others, could put those around them at risk, according to medical experts.
Perhaps there is good in balancing our value for freedom and individuality with the truth of our oneness, interconnectedness, and interdependence.
We are still at choice, we are still free, and there is the possibility of making wiser choices that account for this expanded truth of oneness.
Enjoy the journey.
Somseva™ 
I was pondering the thought of freedom last week. What is freedom? According to a dictionary freedom is the power to act, speak or think as one wants WITHOUT hindrance or restraint. So, according to the definition, under lockdowns we ARE NOT free. In my area, it is the law we must wear a mask to enter any building. We also cannot even go play at the park. This restraint takes away our freedom. Yes, we have to freedom to choose to protest, but nonetheless, are freedoms are being stripped away.
Indeed we have situations where our choices are limited. I cannot shoot anyone who annoys me. I now am freer to pollute our environment. Is my freedom at the cost of someone else’s life what I want? NO!! We limit our behavior for the good of the whole. Limiting the spread of a virus is a freedom I easily let go of. The US is proud of our freedom and our leading the world in deaths is the result. Sad.