Brothers, lately you would have heard a lot about this new system of 'liberty' originating in France. But let us examine the concept more carefully to see if it can be reconciled
with good civil government and safety for the citizens. We see from the example of the
French Republic that a national, democratic form of government can only provide
liberty' if the word is taken to mean the freedom to simply act upon one's appetites and
desires. But true Christian liberty, properly understood, means something quite different:
to be free to live according to both divine and human laws. In other words, it is to live
free to follow your conscience and free of any trouble with the authorities. Seen in this
light, the new French system of liberty is a path leading to destruction, confusion,
overturning of good government, of simply speaking, a new ambush of the devil to lead
us Orthodox Christians astray."
Anthimos, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem [then part of the Ottoman
Empire), Paternal Instruction, leaflet printed in Greek for distribution among Christian
communities in the Ottoman Empire, 1798
Source 2