Servant of God, Pope John Paul II

“Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.”

Re-read that quote from Servant of God, Pope John Paul II.

“Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.”

Our culture here in the United States says that we have the freedom to make choices about who we are, what we do, how we do things.

Servant of God, Pope Paul II spoke truth in his statement. We are blessed in this country of ours to have freedom. Freedom in having the right to do what we ought.

Along with freedom comes responsibility. The responsible thing to do when faced with an obstacle. Sometimes that obstacle is as small as being gracious and accepting the fact that we can be bigger, larger and kinder instead of doing what our basic feeling is. That is called being polite.

It is training that most of us receive from the time we are babies - saying thank you, even when we do not feel like it, perhaps, or excusing our self after bumping into someone accidentally.

As we grow older our freedom to be who we are and what we want to do comes with heavier responsibilities. When a young man and woman are pregnant and view the pregnancy as an obstacle to their financial goals, their standing in their particular circle of friends, their educational goals, or a myriad of other standings, they are faced with a "choice."

The overwhelming voice, it seems, in the United States today is the choice to choose to terminate a pregnancy when the pregnancy is viewed as an obstacle to what a person views as ultimate freedom.

There are plenty of people who are willing to assist in the termination of a pregnancy so that this choice can be perpetuated.

What most men and women who have participated in abortion will tell you is that their choice, the choice that they thought would bring them freedom from the obstacle of a pregnancy, did not bring them freedom but weighs like an albatross around their neck.

So, how do we know how to "do what we ought"? Simple - listen, listen to your heart, listen to your soul, listen to your God given intellect.

In all situations - always, there is a solution and the most important solution to a pregnancy that is viewed as an obstacle, is to recognize that the pregnancy is temporary and that a unique, human being is the result of the pregnancy.

The freedom of having 'the right to do what we ought' is absolutely mind blowing - we HAVE the right to chose to bring a pregnancy to its natural conclusion - a new human being to birth. We have the right to be part of the solution and not have an albatross weighing us down.

True freedom comes in giving of one's self. Bless you, my gentle readers.