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I don't claim to be an expert but this is how I believe it to be. We have free will in that there is no one that is making decisions for us except ourselves. There may be events that lead up to what is happening but all those events, have been set in motion by whatever the people involved in them have chose to do. At any point in time the path of those events can change with a different choice. You may end up at the same destination but how you got there and how long it took you will depend on the choices you make. My 2 cents anyway.
I believe that God is love and not some patriarchal father figure. God will not intervene, because godly intervention would make free will obsolete. If free will has become obsolete then there is no point in choosing between good or evil, which makes good and evil itself obsolete.
We can choose to be aware of the consequences of our actions. Those who choose to be aware know that only we are responsible for every action we take. Each action can be done for good or for evil, there is no middle way. In some situations doing nothing is evil.
Yes, you simply have it but there are repercussions for every action and understanding what they will or may be could potentially limit just how free your will can be.
I'm not sure we can assume either determinism or indeterminism. Past incidents most assuredly can affect the future, but I don't think it can be assumed that everything is determined, can it? Why is it not possible that reality is a mixture of both determined and indetermined events?
I'm not sure we can assume either determinism or indeterminism. Past incidents most assuredly can affect the future, but I don't think it can be assumed that everything is determined, can it? Why is it not possible that reality is a mixture of both determined and indetermined events?
My point is it does not matter if determinism or indeterminism is true.
As I said in an original poster, in either case, you can not explain free will.
Yes, you simply have it but there are repercussions for every action and understanding what they will or may be could potentially limit just how free your will can be.
I think that humanity only has 1 option: to be aware or not. Obviously if you have no knowledge of this option (to be aware of the effects of your actions) you can not choose it. Once you are aware you have to make the conscious choice of being good or evil.
While you are alive you will never be free of desire (hunger) or pain or making decisions.
eufo wrote:
Quote:
Past incidents most assuredly can affect the future, but I don't think it can be assumed that everything is determined, can it? Why is it not possible that reality is a mixture of both determined and indetermined events?
But it is. No incident is exactly identical, therfore past incidents are no guarantee for repeated results.
My point is it does not matter if determinism or indeterminism is true.
As I said in an original poster, in either case, you can not explain free will.
And my point is that I don't believe reality can be explained as strictly determinism or strictly indeterminism. Therefore, freewill can exist. Or at least there are such a multitude of variables that freewill appears to exist.
If you have ever seen the game Plinko (or something similar), you can see how even rigid physics can appear nearly random. Something that is so predetermined by the physical aspects of the game is virtually impossible to predict.
If there is a god, then there can be no free will. You have some options but then you have to choose between that god and hell. Who would ever choose Hell? It's not an option. No sane person would choose hell. It is like a Mafia choice.
If there was free will, you could have the choice to live wonderfully in paradise for eternity without any god around.
The problem here is:
A) That because you assume and / or believe that there is a hell or an afterlife other people automatically also believe what you believe.
B) That there are people who willfully do evil because they enjoy it.
C) That there are people, unlike you and me, who do not believe in good and evil.
D) That there are people who believe that the end justifies the means because they are acting under the authority of a 'higher power'.
And I have not even covered the issue if there is a god or not.
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