Freedom and Holiness

We are used to thinking that freedom and holiness are two opposite worlds. The more freedom there is, the fewer boundaries. The more holiness there is, the less liberty. Rav Kook proposes the opposite direction. Every time a genuine idea, a good will, or a great aspiration is born within us, this is 'the voice of God's angel' knocking on the door of our soul and asking to appear through us. Often what prevents us from advancing is not the Torah or the values, but rather the social chains – the fear of what people will say. The need to please. The habit of thinking like everyone else. These, Rav Kook writes, are what stifle 'the supernal free spirit.' Precisely the person who is faithful to his Torah, his values, and his soul can allow himself to be truly free. 'And as the greatness of freedom, so shall the holiness grow.' Holiness is not born from freeing oneself from all commitment. It appears when a person frees himself from all that distances him from himself. When he is faithful to the Holy One, to his soul, and to his truth, and not bound by what others will say of him.