Is there such a thing as free will?

[spartacus1984]

Is there such a thing as free will?

 

[Fear]

Free Will - Freedom of self determination and action independent of external causes.

Nope, such is life.

Free Will - The ability or discretion to choose.

Yes, my computer is doing it millions of times per second as I type this.

However, I'm not sure if either of these are what you mean by free will.

 

[Gracchus]

Is there such a thing as free will?

Some have to believe there is such a thing as free will. Some choose to believe there is not.

 

[quatona]

Is there such a thing as free will?

What´s that supposed to be?

 

[Callyn]

Terms need to be defined before they can be discussed.

I agree with Fear, though.

 

[Vermithrax]

Is there such a thing as free will?

Please define what you mean by "free will."

 

[Atomagenesis]

St. Thomas Aquinas and Aristotle define it as the ability to choose between different goods or perfections (which are goods).

The intellect knows some oject of good (perfection) and it also knows others. It then chooses the good it sees in that particular thing by an act of the will, and thus we have the freedom of the will to choose between goods.

 

[Gracchus]

St. Thomas Aquinas and Aristotle define it as the ability to choose between different goods or perfections (which are goods).

Aquinas could not even be led over the "pons asinorum".

The intellect knows some oject of good (perfection) and it also knows others. It then chooses the good it sees in that particular thing by an act of the will, and thus we have the freedom of the will to choose between goods.

We can choose as we prefer. In fact, we must choose as we prefer. Alas, we cannot choose what to prefer.

QED: We choose as we must.

 

[JGL53]

No government, even the most democratic, allows absolute free speech.

No universe, even the most bizarre, allows absolute free choice of will.

Do humans exercise a "will"? Sure. Now comes the debate on the various causes of such. Surely there is no one cause.

I suspect there is some sort of determinism going on, but maybe not - maybe the many-worlds theory is correct. Hard to say - hard to set up an experiment to examine the question - maybe impossible.

Whatever and however we define will, free or otherwise, it seems to be a natural function of the brain. If a person "believes" in the reality of a separate "soul" then I suppose it follows that this immaterial substance "soul" can contain the property of the illusive "free will" - why the heck not.

I've lost track - what where we talking about again?

 

[Eudaimonist]

Is there such a thing as free will?

Not for bots, I'll grant you.


eudaimonia,

Mark

 

[gattaca]

Spartacus1984
Blessings: 13
Posts: 666

 

[RevRicneck]

I believe there is free will but I also believe that everything happens for Gods purpose.
[BIBLE]Romans 8:28[/BIBLE]

 

[Opethian]

We can choose as we prefer. In fact, we must choose as we prefer. Alas, we cannot choose what to prefer.

QED: We choose as we must.

Very clear and concise summary of the reasoning that causes me to answer no on the question. Of course, free will hasn't yet been properly defined here, so the poll is quite meaningless.

 

[Opethian]

Not for bots, I'll grant you.


eudaimonia,

Mark

I see that you chose for the option "Yes I believe in free will, but I do not believe in the supernatural" in my older thread on free will (http://www.christianforums.com/t4075130-free-will.html)

I'm quite interested in the reasoning behind this position because I don't understand how you can believe in free will (as I defined it in that thread) without invoking the supernatural.

 

[]RiSeN[]

If you CHOSE to answer "No" to this poll, ...think about it....

 

[Opethian]

I answered no, but free will was not accurately defined in the poll, and the question is far too vague to reasonably answer. I answer no to the question whether free will exists as anything more than an illusion necessary for our consciousness to function the way it does, and free will being defined as it was in my old thread.

 

[karzma]

...yes?

 

[InHisPeace]

If you believe in the Bible, we really don't have free will. Either we do exactly what God tells us or we die.
I personally don't think that is free will.

But I don't believe that God is going to give us two choices: do this or die.
I believe we DO have free will, and God is not going to send us to a place of fiery torment for choosing.
Interestingly, the root of the word "heretic" is "choice".

So those who choose are heretics.
Well, I guess I'm a heretic then.

I believe it is religion that tells people that they must (literally!) do what they are told or die, not God.

So I believe that we have free will. However, I also believe in destiny.



..... Did that make any sense at all? *shrugs*

 

[onewithnature]

^^

I also agree with Opethian and btw, do you listen to Opeth?

Free Will - The ability or discretion to choose.

Yes, my computer is doing it millions of times per second as I type this.

No it´s not, your comp is doing what you tell it to do. There are other things also affecting what it does.

What makes you choose to do what you choose? is it your will? what makes your will be what it is? if you can control that will, what makes you control your will to do one thing and not the other?
you can´t control how energy reacts with energy because you are energy reacting with energy. Same goes for your "soul". It was created in a certain way and sent in a certain direction.

Fallen: what drives you to choose the answer that you did chose? can you control that?

 

[JGL53]

Is there such a thing as free will?

What if "everything" is ultimately one? -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_(philosophy)

If so then, to paraphrase E.G. Robinson, "Where's your 'Free Will' NOW, Moses?" Lol.