Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic Church in Deltona shared a letter from the pastor’s desk in the Aug. 23 bulletin, investigating our freedom as followers of Christ.

The Rev. Christopher Hoffmann reflected that as Americans we value our freedom greatly and this respect for freedom is a good thing.

“Yet, we hold to the principle that freedom must be tempered to the common good,” Fr. Hoffmann said. “These values are being strained these days. These values are actually quite Catholic.”

Hoffmann reflected that Paul wrote to the Galatians, advising them that we should not be slaves unto sin but should be free in Jesus Christ. There is no hierarchy of whether males are better than female or Jews are better than Greeks under the freedom of Christ, but in Christ we are all free.

“Our belief in the Church is that all human freedom comes from God," the pastor said. "God created us as free creatures that can use their will to control their destiny and share in the work of creation. With our freedom we can accomplish justice and when directed to good is the highest human goal.”

In our day-to-day life as Christians and Americans, we must see what this freedom means— not that we can simply do whatever we want, but that our choices make us who we are.

“Good choices lead to holiness, bad choices to evil,” Hoffmann said.

While we seek to protect and further our freedom as Americans, we must also find the balance in our faith that compels us to choose that which helps to further the kingdom of God.

“We desire that all people live as God intended them to be,” Fr. Hoffmann said. “May we always use our freedom to do that which is right and good.”