How free is the will?
Michael Patton has a helpful post on what it means for a Calvinist (like me) to believe in free will, while not believing in it. All depends on what one means by ‘free will.’
Does free will mean:
- That a person is not forced from the outside to make a choice?
- That a person is responsible for his or her choices?
- That a person is the active agent in a choice made?
- That a person is free to do whatever they desire?
- That a person has the ability to choose contrary to their nature (who they are)?
For the record I agree with the first three statements, and not the forth. Nor do I believe the fifth, since our will cannot act contrary to our nature. Thus, I don’t believe we have libertarian free will . That concept seems to be foreign to Scripture, a presupposition or assumption from philosophy and logic rather that God’s Word (and experience I might add).
- Read the whole thing
- Read Freedom of the Will by Jonathan Edwards
- Read Bondage of the Will by Martin Luther
April 28th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
It seems to me, however, that “free” will is an unfortunate misnomer. Clearly circumstances can influence our choices - for example, they can set a limit on our range of choices or make a certain choice more likely. Example: it’s probably not a coincidence that most Christians, Muslims and Jews are born into their respective traditions.