Essay on Taking Our Freedom for Granted - 1107 Words

Taking Our Freedom for Granted Our country was founded on the idea of freedom: freedom from a king, freedom to believe in whatever one wants to believe in and freedom to openly express these beliefs with others. Through careful examination of what the authors during this period of history were expressing, I have found a greater respect for our freedoms. Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine are all familiar names to high school students in the United States. However, their principles are not familiar and I was shocked to learn that I had not previously read a majority of the works these men created to provide a foundation for our country’s belief system. Due to these works, I realize how much I have taken our†¦show more content†¦Paine believed this to be vital: â€Å"But it be necessary to the happiness of man, that he be mentally faithful to himself† (644). Something in Paine’s words, â€Å"My own mind is my own church† (643) really struck me. Going to church doesn’t mean anything unless I know what I feel and believe inside my own mind and body. The church is not the final word on how I have lived my life; the only one judging my actions that matters is God. Paine wrote, â€Å"All national institutions of churches†¦appear to me no other than human inventions set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit† (644). While my view of church is not nearly as harsh as Paine’s, I agree that churches have their own agendas and priorities that don’t always focus on each individual’s religious journey. While churches are beneficial to some, helping them focus and hone in on what exactly they believe and therefore how they want to live as a representation of that, for others the church is too confining and hypocritical. How does the preacher really know that what he is t eaching is correct? And so I agree with Paine once again when he wrote: â€Å"I believe in the equality of man, and I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow–creatures happy† (643). There is no need for one religion as long as all men agree to the same principles: live life toShow MoreRelatedEssay on Taking Things for Granted1479 Words   |  6 Pagesbeings have an absolute and infinite capacity for taking things for granted.† (Aldous Huxley) Young adults take things for granted: basic things, simple things, everything. Wasting food, not realizing what freedom means, not valuing education, and using up any readily available resources, has become a part of the daily routine without anyone realizing it. A rising problem amongst our age bracket today is young adults take what they have for granted, not realizing the long term consequences of theirRead MoreFreedom : Freedom Of Speech And Freedom Of Speech1167 Words   |  5 Pagesdetermining how much freedom the citizens in a society has. Throughout history we have seen many different type of governments that include North Koreas’ dictatorship to the United States that has a government based on principles of democracy. In societies that have democratic governments such as the United States, England, France, and many other western European countries, the citizens have a high degree of freedom of speech. In addition, these people are allo wed to have a high degree of freedom of thoughtRead MoreJunk Food Tax1104 Words   |  5 PagesJunk Food Tax The current issue of junk food consumption and the overall obesity battle in America continues to plague our nation. The suggestion to counteract this problem is the implementation of a â€Å"junk tax†. 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