Freedoms aren't absolute.

If there's one thing my holiness upbringing emphatically grilled into my head as a child, it's that it isn't about me. I grew up on a stable diet of "dying to self," which primarily meant that I was to surrender my will entirely to God. There was to be no part of me that resisted God's will or that pulled against God.

Of course that's easier said than done, and it's not what I have in mind today. This goal of selflessness spilled over into the way we are to treat each other.  We are to live "in honor, preferring one another," as my father used to say. You put others above yourself. This plays itself out down to the dinner table. Go ahead, you take the last piece of pie.

I remember a big aha moment in college when reading Romans 14--it's not about my rights. It's about what's best for everyone and the kingdom. It may be my right to do something, but that doesn't mean the right thing to do is to take advantage of my rights. Rather, let this mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus--who was God and not only became human for us, became a slave for us, but died for us a horrible death (Phil. 2).

I'm still not to what I had in mind for this post. The above is just about how Christians are supposed to behave in this world. There are legitimate situations, but let it be rare that you hear a Christian say, "I've got my rights." In fact, Paul advises the Corinthians that sometimes it's better to lose than to stand up for what is rightfully yours (1 Cor. 6:7).

With this background, you can imagine that it grates on my nerves to hear Americans talking about any number of rights they have, on both sides. I hate hearing "health care is a universal right" just as much as I hate hearing, "It's my right to take a gun anywhere I want." It's not that I don't believe it is important for us to speak up for the rights of Americans... and I do think Christians will do it that way--standing up not so much for their own individual rights but for the rights of others. My problem goes to another aha moment I had once upon a time.

None of the rights of the Constitution are absolute. That is to say, there are exceptions to almost all of our rights as Americans. To hear some Americans speak, there are no limits to my individual rights as an American. (And, yes, the current American climate has become dangerously egoist--my rights rather than our collective rights)  Because the rights of individuals sometimes pull against each other, rights have to be prioritized.

For example, my freedom to religion is not absolute. If I am a Jehovah's Witness who doesn't believe my child should have a blood transfusion, tough cookies if the life of my child is in danger. If my religion says I should kill abortion doctors or murder Christians, sorry Charlie. If my religion calls for ritual virgin sacrifices, I'm out of luck. The freedom of religion isn't absolute. There are exceptions.

My freedom of speech is not absolute. It's a fine line, but if my speech is urging people to violence beyond a certain point, I will be legally forced to shut up. No one is free to incite violence against the government or to speak toward the murder of government officials. At some point, a line is crossed and my rights end.

The same applies to other freedoms in the Bill of Rights. After due process, the government can take away my property to build a highway. A murderer does not have the right to carry a gun. Capital punishment, when legal, can deprive a person of his or her life. Our freedoms as Americans are not absolute. They are extensive, but they are not absolute. I personally think we need to be reminded of this fact.

And it makes sense because the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one. This is the primary principle of people living together. The greatness of the American experiment was the Bill of Rights, which set down certain boundaries for how far this overarching utilitarianism could go. We set up a framework that located individual freedom within the boundaries of a peaceful society.

The precise limits of those boundaries are constantly changing. I can understand a child having to wear a seat belt. I'm less comfortable with an adult being forced to wear one. I understand keeping public places free from smoke and with drinking limits for driving. I'm less comfortable when laws try to force me as an individual to eat healthily.

But it's a give and take. There aren't clear lines. You can't just say, "It's my right." We're in this thing together, not just as individuals.

It's worth reminding ourselves of the Preamble to the Constitution. We the people have established a more perfect union to establish justice, to ensure domestic tranquility, to provide for the common defense, and to promote the general welfare. And, yes, we established a Constitution to ensure the blessings of liberty too--primarily our corporate freedom but also our individual freedom.

The Function of Rights

The set up of the US Constitution--and all modern democracies--is brilliant.  It/they balance two important principles:

1. Majority rule
2. Individual rights

1. Majority rule
The idea of majority rule in itself is a great privilege, although not without potential pitfalls. It is a privilege because we are not ruled by a dictator who can oppress the majority. Its danger is mob rule, where the majority rule in a self-destructive way or a way that oppresses a minority group.  This is why it is important to have an educated majority that understands the nature of self-governance.

2. Individual rights
"The greater good for the greater number" (utilitarianism) is the fundamental assumption of a democracy. It is important to balance this ethical principle out with a second, "without violating individual rights."  The Bill of Rights, the first amendments to the US Constitution, provide protections for these rights.

They include famous rights like 1) freedom of religion, 2) freedom of speech, 3) freedom to keep arms, 4) right to a speedy trial, 5) etc...

The rights aren't absolute.  Judges have to decide which is more important in certain certain circumstances. Judges also have to decide when they trump majority rule. Also, rights do not apply to all citizens. Criminals, for example, can have certain diminished rights.  The government can also institute martial law in a time of chaos.

These dynamics are all in play right now on a number of issues. I doubt we have done a good job as a nation teaching these principles to the populace. My impression is that Americans use whichever principle works for what they want: "I've got my rights" and "Majority rules."  What they don't have a good sense of is how these two connect to each other.