In my view these two work together and one does not exist without the other.

Just like a tree we need roots and foliage.

The roots serve the intake of nutrients and water. Things a tree cannot live without. Just like us, we cannot live without love. We cannot live without understanding, care, provision (food, drink, shelter), protection.

The foliage is the expression and service of the tree. But a tree can be free to be whatever it is only when it is in the right environment that provides the right habitat for it. Under the right circumstances the tree can grow tall and strong and can produce its fruits and timber according to its own nature and species.

True, the nature of a human is more complex. But it is true for us, humans, too, that we can only perform well and produce if we have got the right support and freedom of expression and freedom of self-actualization.

Freedom gives us the possibility to be who we really are. To be able to act in line with our core values and talents.

For me to be able to be free, however, I need the love of others. I need the unconditional acceptance of my temperament, gender, interests and talents to be able to live in line with those. For me to be able to be free to speak my mind, I need listening ears from others who value my opinion. For me to be able to acknowledge and share my own feelings I need at least one respectful person who is willing to listen

BTW: How do you feel? Do you have the freedom to be who you really are? Or you rather feel caught up in the many different and often contradicting expectations of others, who try to convey something about who or what you should be?

A Community Building Event can empower you and entitle you to feel whatever you feel (although not all actions are OK, all the feelings are OK in our view!) and be whoever you really are. Among others it is also a journey of self-discovery. It is not just building community with others, but also finding and respecting your own very authentic self.

Politically speaking

Often I see freedom being emphasized over love, or love emphasized over freedom. In my view it is a continuous task to balance between the two.

On a society level, communist countries limited the freedom of the people in an attempt to provide and take care of everyone.
Controlling leaders like of those communist countries need to ask themselves this question: 

• Can a person be creative and highly productive without the freedom of expression, freedom of initiative and freedom of self-actualization?

America tends to overemphasize freedom and does not provide assistance and help for people even when they are hurting and have no chance and access to housing, health care, food or job opportunities. Highly liberal leaders need to ask themselves this: 

• Can a person take care of him/herself if he/she does not know how? 
• Can someone be useful to society when he or she is cut off from all the services a society can provide?
  
  

We, humans, are meant to live and work together and cooperate with each other. None of the riches and economic possibilities most people in the developed countries have are possible by living independently or living like hermits. So the question arises: where is my own personal responsibility, and where is our common responsibility?

A Community Building Event, however, is not about being political, philosophical or to find solutions to big societal problems. But it can teach us experientially, hence very effectively, about group dynamics and how individual responsibility (freedom) and group responsibility (love) are linked together.

Balancing between individual and group responsibility requires constant attention and vigilance, and by participating in an experiential workshop like M. Scott Peck's can help anyone grow in wisdom and leadership insights.

From leadership point of view

It takes time and emotional investment to mentor others and raise leaders. If you wait on others to become leaders on their own, in most cases, they will never get there.

After they have acquired enough experience and skills under your guidance and mentorship they will need empowerment for them to be able to operate as leaders and for you to reap the rewards of your own investment.

So from a mentee point of view it takes love to grow and become more skilled and valuable and it takes freedom to become more efficient, productive and impactful.

As a final thought here is a Winston Churchill quote I think expresses something similar:

„We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give”