Pope: Emphasis on individual freedom makes us less free to be ourselves
Pope Leo XIV met with bishops of the Focolare Movement to discuss how modern emphasis on individual freedom can undermine genuine self-expression and unity. He praised the movement’s focus on “Giving Witness to Unity” and its role in confronting prejudice, racism, and religious intolerance. The Pope warned that the pursuit of absolute autonomy can paradoxically reduce people’s freedom to be authentic, fostering division and unhappiness. He urged the bishops to continue promoting unity as a sign of the human family, emphasizing that true unity comes from returning to the source of the Holy Trinity.
21 days ago
Pope Leo XIV told bishops associated with the Focolare Movement that modern societies can promote individual freedom as absolute autonomy while leaving people less willing to express their convictions because of fear of judgment or exclusion. He presented communion with God and others, rather than isolated self-determination, as the Christian path to happiness and unity. 1 2 4
Speaking at the Vatican on September 9 to bishops who are friends of the Focolare Movement, Leo described the West as increasingly fragmented as traditional networks of family, friendship, and community weaken. 1 2
He said freedom is increasingly understood as “absolute autonomy”—the pursuit of happiness without moral, natural, or human limits. Yet, he added, people frequently feel less free to live authentically or pursue their highest ideals because they fear being judged or failing to fit in. 1 2 4
The Pope linked this loss of openness to others with a worsening sense of disunity and diminished happiness. He said human fulfillment is rooted in being created in the image of the Triune God, who is a communion of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 1 2 4
Leo emphasized the Focolare theme of “giving witness to unity,” which he said was particularly important in an age marked by polarization. He recalled Chiara Lubich’s role in promoting both the meaning and service of unity and said this mission is even more urgent today. 1 2 4
He referred to the difficult circumstances faced by some bishops, including prejudice, racism, religious intolerance, and violence. The Pope urged them to bear witness to the unity of the human family in their countries and communities. 1 2 4
According to Leo, the answer to the world’s divisions is not primarily the creation of additional committees or projects, but a return to the Holy Trinity as the source of unity. He described the Church as a mystery and sign of communion, called to serve as a sign and leaven of unity in the world. 1 4
The Pope also urged the bishops to become “contemplatives” and strengthen their interior lives. He recommended sustained prayer before the tabernacle, attentive celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours and Mass, and contemplation of the Trinity’s presence within believers. 2 3 4
He said that this interior renewal would help them become witnesses of the unity that builds lasting peace, both to one another and to the people they serve. 2 3 4
The Focolare Movement, formally known as the Work of Mary, was founded in Italy by Chiara Lubich during the 1940s. The Vatican News account dates its foundation to 1942, while the other reports identify 1943. 1 2 4
The movement says it has a presence in more than 180 countries. Reports cited figures of approximately 110,000 active members and about 2 million supporters and adherents, while OSV News described more than 2 million participants in 183 countries. 2 3 4
The Holy See approved the Work of Mary in 1962, and its statutes were approved in 1990 by the then-Pontifical Council for the Laity. Leo had also met with Focolare representatives in March after the movement’s general assembly. 2 3
Reports also noted that the movement commissioned an independent investigation after allegations that a former consecrated member in France had sexually abused minors. A report published in 2022 documented confirmed cases of sexual abuse, as well as spiritual and abuse of power. 2 3 5
Examine the Catholic Church’s doctrine on unity versus individual freedom
Catholic doctrine does not oppose unity to freedom as though one must eliminate the other. It understands authentic freedom as ordered toward truth, the good, and communion with others. Unity is therefore not mere uniformity, while freedom is not unrestricted autonomy.
The Church regards freedom as a fundamental sign that the human person is made in God’s image. Every person possesses a natural right to be treated as a responsible agent, especially in religious and moral matters.
However, Catholic teaching rejects the idea that freedom means simply doing whatever one wishes. A person is not merely a self-inventing will detached from human nature; bodily and spiritual dimensions form one unified person, whose freedom has moral meaning.
Thus, freedom is not merely the absence of external restraint. It is the capacity to possess oneself and act for the genuine good. The ability to reject moral evil is itself an expression of freedom.
The central Catholic principle is that conscience is not a license to create moral truth. John Paul II states that freedom of conscience is “never freedom from the truth but always and only freedom in the truth.”
This does not mean that the Church treats conscience as irrelevant. Rather, the Church understands conscience as the interior judgment by which a person recognizes and applies moral truth. The Church’s teaching is meant to form conscience and help it discover truths it ought already to seek, rather than impose an arbitrary external standard.
Accordingly, an individual may be sincerely mistaken. But sincerity alone does not make a judgment correct. Christian freedom involves an ongoing struggle to know objective truth, together with patience toward those whose consciences are less well formed.
The Church’s unity is principally unity in faith and communion. This unity does not require identical personalities, preferences, vocations, or spiritual approaches. The International Theological Commission explicitly distinguishes the necessary unity of faith and communion from legitimate diversity in vocations and personal ways of approaching Christ.
Catholic unity therefore permits genuine pluralism in matters that do not contradict revealed truth or the moral law. Catholics may differ in political judgments, cultural expressions, professional choices, and prudential strategies. Social teaching recognizes the freedom to express opinions, choose a state of life, pursue work, and undertake social or political initiatives, provided these freedoms are exercised responsibly and within the requirements of the common good.
Unity becomes distorted when it demands conformity in matters that the Church leaves open. Conversely, freedom becomes distorted when it treats every personal preference as morally decisive or refuses the truths necessary for communion.
Catholic doctrine also rejects radically individualistic freedom. Human beings are created for relationship—with God and with one another. Benedict XVI teaches that freedom is not achieved by making oneself absolute or by opposing others; it becomes fully human through mutual acceptance, shared responsibility, and service.
The Compendium of the Social Doctrine similarly states that freedom exists within relationships governed by truth and justice, not in total self-sufficiency.
This explains why law and authority are not necessarily enemies of freedom. When law protects the common good and reflects the moral order, it can prevent stronger individuals from dominating weaker ones and create the conditions for everyone’s responsible participation. Catholic teaching therefore accepts legal limits on freedom when they are necessary for justice, public order, and the common good.
The Church strongly defends religious freedom, especially against coercion. Persons must be able to seek truth, profess their religion, and act responsibly according to conscience.
Yet religious freedom does not imply that all beliefs are equally true, nor that truth is irrelevant. The Church’s position is that people must be free to seek and embrace truth without coercion, while Christians remain obligated to witness to the truth they have received. John Paul II describes this as transmitting truth without betraying trust and respecting persons without accepting error.
In this sense, the Church’s unity is not maintained by force. It is grounded in shared adherence to Christ and the truth of the faith, while personal assent must be genuinely free.
Catholic doctrine can be summarized through four principles:
The Church therefore calls individuals to form their consciences, obey moral truth, respect the legitimate freedom of others, and contribute to the common good. It calls the community to preserve the unity of faith while allowing legitimate diversity. Authentic Catholic unity is not the destruction of individual freedom; it is the communion in which freedom reaches its proper fulfillment.