Liberty Still Rings
There was something rather symbolic about standing beside the Liberty Bell and reflecting on liberty at a time when America is preparing to celebrate 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Looking around yesterday, the building was full of visitors from all over the world, I even got to practice my Dutch with a couple of lads from the Netherlands. People patiently queued to catch a glimpse of a cracked bell that no longer rings.
Yet its message still echoes.
As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it was difficult for me not to think of Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty.
“And…. he rent his coat, and he took a piece thereof and wrote upon it – in memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children…. (and he called it the title of liberty)” – Alma 46:12-13
Moroni understood that liberty was not merely a political idea. It was something worth preserving, protecting and passing on. Freedom allowed people to worship, to choose, to build families and to live according to their deepest convictions.
Many Visitors
Many displays featured photographs of world leaders past and present and of statesmen visiting the Liberty Bell.
To me, it seemed that whenever someone becomes a significant voice in public life, they eventually find themselves standing beside this cracked bell for a photograph. Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama and many others have done exactly that.
I wondered if that is because liberty remains one of humanity’s most cherished ideals?
The bell may no longer ring, but its message continues to resonate far beyond the city of Philadelphia.
Standing beside the Liberty Bell, I found myself thinking that liberty is rarely maintained by grand gestures alone. More often it is preserved by ordinary people who value it enough to defend it, nurture it and use it wisely.
I also found it interesting that rather than a political statement, those who commissioned the bell, chose a scripture from Leviticus 25:10 to cast into the bell: “Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.”
Perhaps that is one reason people still visit. Deep down, most of us recognise that liberty is precious.
As we prepare to begin our church history tour, I wonder if there is an even deeper form of liberty worth considering. Through Jesus Christ, we can be liberated from fear, guilt, sin, resentment and the things that bind us spiritually. Political liberty matters greatly, but spiritual liberty matters eternally.
Yesterday, a cracked bell reminded me that some ideas are powerful enough to endure long after the sound has faded.
What liberties do you sometimes take for granted – and how are you using them to bless the lives of others?
