FREEDOM

Concerning what is sacred, often I’m alone:
Set apart from other men; a sect all my own.
Pious men of good report assume that I’ve no God
Because the path I’ve chosen is not the path they trod.

But I have a god—though not the God of most:
No distant king, or vengeful Judge, or angry Lord of Hosts.

The glory of my God is everywhere revealed,
In burning sun, in languid moon, in heaven, sea and field;
In every law which keeps the earth and all things in it bound
The mind of my most gracious God is waiting to be found.

And man—of all God’s creatures—can learn his grand design,
so in the name of nature’s god, I hold this truth divine:


Free each man was born,
And free each man remains
Though he’s beaten and he’s torn,
And weighted down in chains.
In the strength of his convictions
He can stand before the crowd:
His heart beats free
And his head remains unbowed.

For there’s something in a man
That should not be denied—
Though it’s often sacrificed,
And for its sake men have died,
Paying the ultimate price.

Let persecutions come,
Let calumny defame;
The cause of human liberty
Flows onward unrestrained;
Should other voices fail,
I will sing strong and loud:
“My heart beats free!
My head remains unbowed!”

Classical Mormon theology puts forth a radical doctrine of human Free Agency: the mind of man is eternal, uncreated and co-equal with God. Freedom is not a gift from to humans; it is not the creation of God. Rather freedom is inherent in the very nature of man.

Because of this, Reform Mormons value the freedom, independence and individual agency.

Share your thoughts on freedom with our readers. Email them to: reformmormons@aol.com