Hmmmm.... I have some thoughts surrounding the recent Danish cartoon debacle. First let me preface this blog with the fact that I have not seen the cartoon and really have not been interested in the debate. I have other things to think about. The discussion has been going on around me in the background, on the news, on some frequented blogs and such.
I normally don't even attempt to discuss politics or religion on this format because I have a hard time writing anything truly serious lest it come out trite. Writing is Not my forte. Neither is spelling as some may have caught on to. (apology in advance!)

Anyways, I made an observation this morning while listening to a local radio station. They were discussing the issue at length and had some pretty emotional calls regarding the subject. One girl compared the anti-Muslamic cartoon to the Holocaust.... hmmm. Another more reasonable girl had some very good points but the reality came out when she said (not quoting word for word) that because reverence for the prophet Muhammed is what the Muslim religion is centered around NO ONE had the right to make fun of or mock the Prophet and if they did they needed to be held accountable.
The hosts of the show pointed out that Jesus, the Pope, and other religious figures are mocked on a daily basis on a universal scale and there really is no outcry for retribution.
They were making light of it and yet it struck a cord in me. I saw something interesting in her outlook and world view and I saw the reverse of that in the opposite view.
What I saw was FREEDOM. Not on her part because when it all came down to it as reasonable and western as she was, there was a militant spirit that demanded either alligance or retribution. On the other side I saw a freedom to let truth be truth. The freedom for people to come to that truth on there own with no violence or force.

I feel that that is the spirit that Jesus brought.....Freedom. We are free to choose, free to mock, free to turn to him and cry for help, free to enjoy him, free to let others learn the same lessons we learned by being free or to let them turn away, and mostly, free to experience the consequences of those choices. We can't force or coerce or find vengence if someone doesn't believe the way we do. Because they are free. Even though the United States is really not a Christian place there are some values that have splashed over and made their mark. And one of those values is freedom. As a nation we really value and have come to expect it as right.

I am so thankful beyond expression for a God that gives me choice. I'm thankful for a country that values freedom (even if it's not perfect). I'm thankful for the grace of freedom and that I actually get to experience it.