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How can humanism believe humans have free will if everything is physically determined? If we have no free will, we have no agency. It doesn't matter how much

by yters 9y ago

How can humanism believe humans have free will if everything is physically determined? If we have no free will, we have no agency. It doesn't matter how much humanists assert to the contrary. Christianity, on the other hand, easily explains free will and agency.

mercer 9y ago
No it doesn't. The theological discussions around the whole concept of 'free will' are quite hairy, and there are multiple christian denominations that don't strictly believe that we have free will.
- yters 9y ago
  Traditionally, all mainstream Christians believed in libertarian free will. You can find this discussed in Augustine and Anselm and Aquinas, off the top of my head. That changed with Luther and Calvin, but even today you'd be hard pressed to find a large body of Christians that outright deny free will, since it is so blatantly referred to in the Bible.
n4r9 9y ago
It seems the majority of philosophers (whose job it is to think long and hard about these things) are compatibilists [0]; i.e. believe in both free will and determinism. If you're actually interested in this rather than thinking you already know the answer, there is plenty of reading available online [1,2] [0] http://commonsenseatheism.com/?p=13371 http://commonsenseatheism.com/?p=13371 [1] https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/compatibilism/ https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/compatibilism/ [2] https://samharris.org/reflections-on-free-will/ https://samharris.org/reflections-on-free-will/
- yters 9y ago
  Exactly my point. Compatibilism is incoherent. It is just calling determinism free will, like calling the number 1 green. But if free will is determined, then no one has any control over their actions. Everything is determined, and given the right parameters in their decision algorithm, they will do whatever you want. Hence the atheist regimes' focus on brainwashing detailed in 1984.
  - n4r9 9y ago
    You have already made up your mind and are not willing to engage in serious discussion, nor read and consider other viewpoints.
    - yters 9y ago
      You assume I didn't used to be a compatibilist, but changed my mind after considering alternate viewpoints. But I did once I understood libertarian free will is a coherent alternative.

by yters 9y ago

mercer 9y ago

No it doesn't. The theological discussions around the whole concept of 'free will' are quite hairy, and there are multiple christian denominations that don't strictly believe that we have free will.

yters 9y ago
Traditionally, all mainstream Christians believed in libertarian free will. You can find this discussed in Augustine and Anselm and Aquinas, off the top of my head. That changed with Luther and Calvin, but even today you'd be hard pressed to find a large body of Christians that outright deny free will, since it is so blatantly referred to in the Bible.

n4r9 9y ago

It seems the majority of philosophers (whose job it is to think long and hard about these things) are compatibilists [0]; i.e. believe in both free will and determinism. If you're actually interested in this rather than thinking you already know the answer, there is plenty of reading available online [1,2] [0] http://commonsenseatheism.com/?p=13371 http://commonsenseatheism.com/?p=13371 [1] https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/compatibilism/ https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/compatibilism/ [2] https://samharris.org/reflections-on-free-will/ https://samharris.org/reflections-on-free-will/

yters 9y ago
Exactly my point. Compatibilism is incoherent. It is just calling determinism free will, like calling the number 1 green. But if free will is determined, then no one has any control over their actions. Everything is determined, and given the right parameters in their decision algorithm, they will do whatever you want. Hence the atheist regimes' focus on brainwashing detailed in 1984.
- n4r9 9y ago
  You have already made up your mind and are not willing to engage in serious discussion, nor read and consider other viewpoints.
  - yters 9y ago
    You assume I didn't used to be a compatibilist, but changed my mind after considering alternate viewpoints. But I did once I understood libertarian free will is a coherent alternative.