The Gift of Freedom

This piece is directed towards those of you who live in the domestic church, the family. I think that I’m safe in saying that we all love to give and receive gifts, at Christmas, heck, any ‘ol time. As we enjoy this Christmas, it is a good time to be thankful for the God-given gifts that we have received and to evaluate what we are doing with them.

We hear so much about freedom these days. Our civil liberties are only a social reflection of the great gift of freedom given to each of us by our Creator. He gives us the gifts of His life and His love. Second only to these is the great gift of freedom that He has bestowed on each of us. In the beginning of human history, we see the first evidence of freedom. Our first parents had the freedom to choose to obey or to disobey. You might be thinking, “Great gift God, the freedom to mess up!” True, but the opposite is also true. Freedom is what allows us to love, to give ourselves away. Love cannot be gained by force, cannot be dictated. Love must be given freely and freely received. Even if our civil freedoms were to break down, we could maintain interior freedom of heart. Our freedom of heart cannot be taken away from us. As St. Maximilian Kolbe sat on the floor of his starvation cell at Auschwitz, awaiting the lethal injection that would end his earthly life, he had a choice. He chose to look on his killers with such intense love that they asked him to avert his gaze. He never lost his gift of freedom, even in prison. Freedom is the gift that gives itself away.

In my family, I remember that as children we often received practical gifts at Christmas, you know, socks, underwear, that sort of thing. My parents were careful (when finances allowed for it) to give us at least one gift that was not practical at all, just something that we really wanted (When I was seven, it was a “Lil Bo-Peep” doll). Even as a child, this impracticality spoke to my heart of the Father’s gratuitous love for me. Parents want to give generously to their children, just as Our Heavenly Father does.

Through parents, the Father gives to children His own life and love. He also wants parents to give to their children His next greatest gift, the gift of freedom. This Christmas, why not give your children this great gift of freedom. You are probably already allowing this gift to blossom in your children in many ways, but have you thought about your children’s future, their vocation or calling? Have you assumed that they will marry or have you hoped that they might embrace the consecrated life? Have you encouraged them to listen to God’s voice speaking softly in their hearts and have you been open to receive the call that God places there? Have you prayed that they will have the grace to respond to whatever the Lord asks of them? Have you prayed for the grace to accept His will for them?

If you have been open to the possibility of the Lord calling your children to the consecrated life, I thank you. If you have experienced reluctance at the thought of it, I’d challenge you to be real with your reservations (not openly with your children of course) and to pray through them. The desire to live eternally is so very strong in us. It is hard to accept that grandchildren will not be born, that we will not live on this way. Children who begin to hear the call to the consecrated life are beginning to understand the call to live eternally, but they are also beginning to understand that they are being called to live eternity now. A call to the celibate consecrated life is a call to live the reality of heaven here on earth because there will be no marriage in heaven. From personal experience, I can tell you that it is an awesome call! In giving your children the freedom to listen to God’s call you are giving them yourself, your will for them, your dreams for them and you are freely giving them into the Father’s will. What could be better?

The Father freely gives us His only Son. There is a great mystery in this for all of us, but particularly for parents. Please ponder this gift and how you are called to emulate it. Would you freely give your son to be a priest of Christ? Would you freely give your daughter to the Lord in the religious life? He might not ask you to do this, but then again, He might. Whether you have already done so, or want to do so more fully; please give your children the great gift of freedom, the freedom to love in the way that the Lord has destined for them. Help them to hear God’s call and help them to respond freely and generously.

I offer this prayer for those of you who are brave enough to embrace it. Even though it is phrased in the plural, a single parent can pray it quite well. Our very own Sr. Grace Anne, whose beloved husband died many years ago, continues to speak of “our” children, recognizing that they continue to be a fruit of their shared love.

If you know of any woman who is discerning this call, please encourage her to act. We will be hosting two Vocation Discernment Retreats here at our monastery next spring, the dates being February 22-24 and April 12-14, 2002. We will also be offering a Come and See weekend for those more specifically interested in our community on March 21-24, 2002. Some younger girls already come out to visit us occasionally and we are hoping to plan an event for younger girls of various ages in the spring as well. Please call Sr. Catherine Lynn at (740) 544-5542 or e-mail her at torsisters@juno.com if you want more information about any of these events.

Sr. Catherine Lynn Forsythe is a sister in the Franciscan Sisters, TOR of Penance of the Sorrowful Mother, located in Toronto, Ohio. She assists the Vocation Director of her community and is continuing her formation as a temporarily professed sister within the community. Sr. Catherine Lynn is a native of Canada and appreciates the fact that the Lord has chosen to transplant her further south. For more information on Sr. Catherine's religous community, write torsisters@juno.com.