“An important distinction must be made: liberation and freedom are not the same. Liberation is a process. Freedom is a temporary state of being. Liberation is dynamic. It never ends.”
-Rev. Dr. Emilie Townes (Womanist theologian and social ethicist)
Our spiritual theme for the month of February is “liberation,” as we continue our exploration of themes related to our touchstone statement for the year:
Building Beloved Community with a focus on anti-racism and the practice of coming together again, in-person, online, and in covenant.
As I’ve talked to others and reflected on the theme of liberation, most often images and stories of freedom come to mind and are shared. Both freedom and liberation have a sense of self-determination and the power to act, think or speak the way we want to. And yet, Rev. Dr. Townes suggests that liberation and freedom are different. Liberation is a process, freedom is temporary. I suggest another difference is that freedom is a feeling we have as an individual, whereas liberation recognizes our interdependence. Collective liberation recognizes that our struggles are connected and together we can create the world we dream about.
Here’s an example. Last week, OUUC’s Health & Safety Task Force met to discuss the next steps in OUUC’s Covid policies and practice: should we continue to require masks in the building? The members of this Task Force have worked for 2 ½ years to help craft policies to help us all be as safe as possible. The Task Force decided to make masks optional at OUUC; each of us would decide for ourselves what we are comfortable with.
Over the past 2 ½ years, members of the Task Force, which includes me, have wrestled with big questions, like how to balance individual preference and community care. How do we allow people to decide for themselves and how do we care for those among us who are most vulnerable?
These are questions of freedom and liberation. How do we help ensure the freedom to decide for ourselves about masks and how do we ensure that our community is liberated from severe illness? Freedom to wear a mask or not is a temporary state, and it changes. The call to care for each other so we may all feel liberation is an on-going process and one that requires us to recognize our interdependence.
So, please wear a mask or not as you wish; exercise your freedom. And, as you make your choice, please consider community care. By our choices and our care now and in the months to come, I hope we can all be released from the restrictions that Covid has required and feel liberation.
Blessings on your week,
Rev. Mary
Minister@ouuc.org
