"For the other point concerning liberty, I observe a great mistake in the country about that. There is a twofold liberty, natural (I mean as our nature is now corrupt) and civil or federal. The first is common to man with beasts and other creatures. By this, man, as he stands in relation to man simply, hath liberty to do what he lists; it is a liberty to evil as well as to good. This liberty is incompatible and inconsistent with authority and cannot endure the least restraint of the most just authority. The exercise and maintaining of this liberty makes men grow more evil and in time to be worse than brute beasts: omnes sumus licentia deteriores. This is that great enemy of truth and peace, that wild beast, which all of the ordinances of God are bent against, to restrain and subdue it. The other kind of liberty I call civil or federal; it may also be termed moral, in reference to the covenant between God and man, in the moral law, and the politic covenants and constitutions amongst men themselves. This liberty is the proper end and object of authority and cannot subsist without it; and it is a liberty to that only which is good, just, and honest. This liberty you are to stand for, with the hazard (not only of your goods, but) of your lives, if need be..."
Within Winthrop's famous "little speech", he outlines and defends much of his thought and views on naural liberty and civil liberty. Natural lioberty he says is common to man with beasts as each has the liberty to do as he chooses, weather for good or for evil; just do whatever without considering the consequences. Moral or civic liberty, however, exists between man and god. Winthrop states that, "This liberty is the proper end and object of authority and cannot subsist without it; and it is a liberty to that only which is good, just and honest." He compares this kind of liberty as wherewith Christ hath made us free. His view is that people should regard this type of liberty as the freedom to obey the authorities that have been instutited by god to govern according to his moral law. For him liberty meant submission to the governing authority.
I can certainly see Winthrop's view on liberty being twofold. His insistance that moral liberty is necessary to keep order was very insightful. Even today, left to his own devices man is capable of committing untinkable atrocities. Without civil, moral, federal authority i believe man would be self destructive and society would run amock.
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