Excerpt from Genesis 27:30-46 (The Message)

". . .when you can't take it any more you'll break loose and run free."

Reflection by William C. Green

Esau didn't get his father Isaac's blessing. He had traded away this birthright to his younger brother, Jacob, for a bowl of stew. Jacob then tricked his father into giving it to him. Given the custom of the day, Isaac couldn't undo the mistake. Seeing Esau's fury, his father said to him, "When you can't take it any more you'll break loose and run free."

That's what happened with the American colonists. They felt betrayed by their mother country. They were angry. When they couldn't take it any more they broke loose from the British and ran free. But as with Esau later on, they found that freedom is a mixed blessing. As one writer put it, "It is always the same: once you are liberated, you are forced to ask who you are." Anxiety often ensures. It’s the dizziness of freedom.

We were sure of ourselves while opposing the British. We became less sure in relation to fellow countrymen denied the freedom we had gained. A century after the Revolutionary War the Civil War was fought.

Franklin Roosevelt said freedom can't be given: it must be achieved. It's a never-ending struggle requiring that we remember who we are lest we become anxious and dizzy. We're not Esau or Jacob, and we're not defined by the right or the left. We're brothers and sisters embraced equally by a loving God. This is our blessing and strength as we insist on "liberty and justice for all." It's also the price of freedom.

Prayer

God, whose blessing knows no bounds, may we make known that blessing amid all that divides us. Amen.

About the Author William C. Green, a United Church of Christ minister, is the Director of Long Looking, a consultancy service specializing in fundraising and education for congregations. His new book, 52 Ways to Ignite Your Congregation: Generous Giving, has just been published.

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