My Freedom Ends One Inch From Your Nose

I was recently interviewed by a newspaper journalist on Conservative MP, Brian Storseth's Private Member's Bill C-304.  This bill would repeal Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act.  One of Storseth's points is that "Freedom of Speech is a fundamental principle in our democracy and one in which Canadians have fought and died for, for more than a century."  One of the problems that he identifies is the issue of how the Human Rights Commission may or may not define "hate speech."  I was told that in most cases, those who have been found in contravention of hate speech are religious people.   By simply stating some of the prohibitions in Scripture, Christians may be in danger of the charge of using hate language.

I was asked how I might define "freedom of speech."   One of the maxims that emerged from my past was the oft quoted statement that my freedom ends one inch away from your nose.  This says it all for me.  Let's set the ground rules:

#1. No living person is free or has total freedom.  By nature we are creatures, dependent upon the mercy and good graces of our Creator.  By nature and choice we are sinners.  Jesus said those that sin are enslaved.  No one is free. 

#2. Free will is a myth.  We are all moral agents who are required of God to make responsible moral choices, but none of our choices are made in a vacuum. We all make choices consistent with our nature, our experience, our access to coercion, etc.  No one is free.  No one makes free choices, per se.  We do make choices, though.

#3. Any so-called freedom we exercise is less about living by no restrictions but in fact choosing which restrictions we will live under, whether self-imposed or enforced upon us.  As Tim Keller wrote: Freedom then, is not the absence of limitations and constraints but it is finding the right ones, those that fit our nature and liberate us." [1]   A train that wants to be free by leaving the rails will end in despair.  A fish that wants to be free by living out of the lake will soon find life very debilitating.

For us to live in a country that enjoys "freedom" we must define that liberty in terms that reflect chosen restrictions and restraint.  It is only then that we can know true freedom.  I enjoy a certain liberty in blogging.  My freedom of speech is only free when I exercise such governance that enhances that experience.

Let me offer an autobiographical illustration.  I am a preacher.  Speech is part of my calling.  My speech is only free when it is governed by Divine restrictions.  For example Ephesians 4:25 (ESV), directs us to ". . . put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another."  Again Paul counsels us to pastors to speak  ". . . from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith." (1 Timothy 1:5, ESV).  True freedom only exists when that happens.

Hate speech is not eliminated by failing to tell someone the truth.  Hate speech is telling the truth in an unloving manner with an agenda that is less than honorable.










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1. Keller, Timothy (2009-08-04). The Reason for God (p. 47). Penguin Group. Kindle Edition.