All human beings have the light of Christ. It allows every person to comprehend the nature of his or her existence without direct instruction or commands. The light of Christ is the spark of God in all of us. It helps us cut through the veil covering our eyes from eternity. It offers us simple guidance in our interactions with mankind. It helps us see others as we see ourselves and it presses upon our conscience what not to do.
Every living thing has the light of Christ to fulfill the measure of its creation. That said, the light can dim and even disappear at times from neglect or abandonment. We can turn our backs on the light.
Freedom depends on the light of Christ as we do, individually, on the Atonement of Christ. The light of Christ creates an even playing field, or commensurability, in our social and governmental structures. Commensurability means to have a common measure of things. In our context of freedom, it means human beings have the capacity see and agree upon basic truths. Ultimately, commensurability means that truth is discoverable. Cynics, such as Pontius Pilate, might ask, “What is truth?” Faithful Latter-day Saints, indeed all the world still walking in the light of Christ, answer, “Truth exists.”
If we deny the existence of truth, if we deny that every human being is a child of God, if we deny that every man, woman and child is born with the light of Christ, freedom disappears and civilizations, communities and governments become subject to Darwinian survival of the fittest. Faithful Latter-day Saints, and all truth seekers, lay a foundation of freedom as they seek to understand, explain and apply commensurability – that is, we build freedom to the degree we embrace the light of Christ within us.
Next: Human Dignity
