Skip to main content

The Question of Free Will

Often, unstudied Christians (I speak from experience) misunderstand the questions others ask concerning free will.

To the Christian, free will often raises the thought of issues related to man's ability and responsibility when it comes to original and actual sin.

However, for the naturalist / nihilist, while the issue can involve matters related to ability & responsibility (i.e., ethics), it's often more a question of being and meaning, that is... if matter is all there is, and if the cosmos operates with a uniformity of cause and effect in a closed system [some differ on this], and if man is more or less a machine, then the question among naturalists & nihilists when it comes to "free will" deals more with significance, dignity and meaning.

James Sire in his book The Universe Next Door puts it well when he says:

"The issue of human freedom goes deeper than these naturalists see... [SURE] I can do what I WANT, but WHAT I WANT is the RESULT of PAST STATES OF AFFAIRS over which ultimately I HAVE NO CONTROL. I did not freely select my particular genetic makeup or my original family environment. By the time I asked whether I was free to act freely, I was so molded by nature and nurture that the very fact that the question occurred to me was determined. That is, my SELF ITSELF was determined by outside forces. I can indeed ask such questions, I can act according to my wants and desires, and I can appear to myself to be free, but it is appearance only. Nietzsche is right: 'the acting man's delusion about himself, his assumption that free will exists, is also part of the calculating mechanism.'" [CAPS, MY emphasis]

Christians in debating unbelivers over free will must be careful to understand and address what's actually being asked and/or what's actually being addressed, for what's at hand on one level goes deeper than the relationship between man's "free and bound" will even to the issue of the existence of free will.

Comments

Post a Comment

Older Posts

Show more

Popular posts from this blog

Eckhart Tolle - Christian Response

Unbelievable! ...The extent man not founded upon Christ will go and follow in their quest and pursuit of self and attempts to explain away reality and sin. Here's Oprah's spiritual sage... Response: 1. He resurrects errors of the past which deny reality by seeking to replace it with forms. 2. By reducing the past to forms (or photo albums) he not only denies the reality of the past but the extent of it's connectedness and relationship to the present. This error he also translates in regard to the future. 3. He establishes a false premise that one can separate the reality of the present ("now") from reality itself, which he vests in onesself (though he inconsistently goes on to suggest that life is found in abandoning oneself) 4. He has no grounds or basis for assuming reality is found in self (and apart from everything else, or only what one want's to allow) 5. By denying the truth of God, he falsely asserts that the future is no longer problematic...
73 comments
Read more

Logic Force Theory: A New Perspective on Reality (R=L+S→D)

# Author's Note The theory presented in these pages emerged from a simple yet persistent question: Why does mathematics so effectively describe physical reality? This "unreasonable effectiveness," as Eugene Wigner famously termed it, suggests a deep connection between logical necessity and physical behavior. Logic Force Theory (LFT) represents an attempt to explore this connection by positing that logical structure might be more fundamental than physical laws themselves. I present this theory not as a complete or final framework, but as an invitation to consider a different perspective on quantum mechanics. While LFT offers potential solutions to longstanding problems like the measurement problem and the quantum-to-classical transition, it also raises new questions and challenges. Some of its mathematical frameworks require further development, and its philosophical implications need deeper exploration. The core premise - that reality must conform to logical necessity ( R...
Post a Comment
Read more

Eckhart Tolle Christianity (Understanding Eckhart Tolle - Comparison / Difference with Christianity)

I believe it important that both believers and unbelievers understand the difference between the teaching of Eckhart Tolle and Christianity. Here's a brief post to introduce you to a few of the significant differences. (Note, I've just been exposed to Tolle, but it doesn't seem to take long to discern the differences) Context (the problem)Taken from here .: Despite Oprah and Eckhart's reduction of Christianity to but one "way" amongst many other equally legitimate ways to God, and their calling Christ a "revolutionary" who has been misunderstood by the Church, and who simply came to manifest "Christ-consciousness", a quick search through the internet reveals that many Christians are following Oprah in attempting to fuse together the teachings of Eckhart, and the doctrines of the historical Christian church. Great website to gain quick summary of Eckhart's beliefs/teachings: Ripples on the Surface of Being Key Responses by Eckhart To...
71 comments
Read more