Freedom – with Boundaries 634.6 Freedom with Gratitude
The substantial definition of freedom includes gratitude that we re-
ceive life and freedom as gifts from God. In this gratitude we become
aware explicitly that our life is finite and our freedom limited. This
gratitude forms the basis for the use we make of our freedom.^31
4.7 Freedom with Boundaries^32
4.7.1 Baptism and Holy Supper – Freedom and Love
“The Lord is the spirit. Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is free-
dom.” (II Cor 3:17). Christian congregations live in the spirit of the
Lord. Therefore, freedom is at the centre of the life of the congregation.
Baptism is the sacrament of liberation. It constitutes the Christian life
through the liberation from the powers of sin and death. But the church-
es of the reformation have in common that they see the Lord's Supper as
the other sacrament. The Lord's Supper is the sacrament of love. It in-
vites the participants to the Lord’s table and includes them into the
community with Christ. It always opens this community beyond the
limits of those present. Baptism and the Lord's Supper constitute the
inner coherence of love and freedom in the life of Christian congrega-
tions.
4.7.2 Expansionist Freedom without Boundaries?
But what do we understand by “freedom”. Ever since Isaiah Berlin
we have become used to distinguishing “two concepts of freedom”, neg-
31
For a more extensive presentation see Wolfgang Huber, Verantwortete
Freiheit als Lebensform, in Thomas Fuchs & Grit Schwarzkopf (eds),
Verantwortlichkeit – nur eine Illusion? (Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter,
2010), 319- 32 340.
This part of the text is based on the summary of a speech at SKLAS, Confer-
ence on “Congregations, Freedom and Responsibility”, Malmesbury, 18 Feb.
2015.