Foreknowledge Versus Free Will
The philosophical problem concerning human sin and God’s foreknowledge lies in the principle that if God is omniscient, humans cannot be held responsible for sin. This dilemma deals primarily with determinism and libertarianism. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy defines determinism as “the idea that every event is necessitated by antecedent events and conditions together with the laws of nature” (Hoefer, 1). Libertarianism can be defined by the denial of determinism and the presence of free will. In this paper, I will argue that although God has foreknowledge of our actions, this omniscience is not inconsistent with free will.
Although God is omniscient of future sin, free will ensures that humans are not …show more content…
St. Augustine defines sin as “…any transgression in deed, or word, or desire, of the eternal law. And the eternal law is the divine order or will of God…” (Augustine, 27). A secular definition would be any action that removes an individual from good standing in a society. Either definition could be used for my argument but in order to avoid confusion, but this paper will use St. Augustine’s definition of sin. According to St. Augustine, humans are responsible for sin. If there is no free will and all of our actions are controlled by God, as a determinist’s position would be, it follows that individuals cannot be held responsible for their actions. However, God’s foreknowledge is just that, knowledge. Having knowledge of a future event does not mean you control the output of that event. If a friend were told that he will be happy tomorrow, when he is happy tomorrow (it must be true in order to be considered knowledge), he is happy of his own free will. Solely having knowledge of his future happiness does not control his ability to be happy. St. Augustine states: “He has foreknowledge of our (will) power. Hence power is not taken away from me due to His foreknowledge – it is thus mine all the more certainly, since He whose foreknowledge does not err foreknew that it would be mine” (Augustine, 79).
Theodicy attempts to reconcile the existence and nature of God with evidence of evil in the world. Without evil, goodness could not exist. …show more content…
Certainly a determinist would agree that if God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, foreknowledge would be a necessary characteristic. Throughout the bible, God is shown to be a judge. “For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Romans 14:10). How are we to be judged for our actions by God when he already decided how we will act? The use of judgment language in the bible provides compelling evidence for a libertarian view but also the reason why free will was given to humans in the first place. According to the bible, everyone’s actions will be examined during the second coming of Jesus.
Another objection to my position could be if God is good and everything he creates is good, why is there evil in the world? If God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, surely He would be able to create a world in which evil does not
The philosophical problem concerning human sin and God’s foreknowledge lies in the principle that if God is omniscient, humans cannot be held responsible for sin. This dilemma deals primarily with determinism and libertarianism. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy defines determinism as “the idea that every event is necessitated by antecedent events and conditions together with the laws of nature” (Hoefer, 1). Libertarianism can be defined by the denial of determinism and the presence of free will. In this paper, I will argue that although God has foreknowledge of our actions, this omniscience is not inconsistent with free will.
Although God is omniscient of future sin, free will ensures that humans are not …show more content…
St. Augustine defines sin as “…any transgression in deed, or word, or desire, of the eternal law. And the eternal law is the divine order or will of God…” (Augustine, 27). A secular definition would be any action that removes an individual from good standing in a society. Either definition could be used for my argument but in order to avoid confusion, but this paper will use St. Augustine’s definition of sin. According to St. Augustine, humans are responsible for sin. If there is no free will and all of our actions are controlled by God, as a determinist’s position would be, it follows that individuals cannot be held responsible for their actions. However, God’s foreknowledge is just that, knowledge. Having knowledge of a future event does not mean you control the output of that event. If a friend were told that he will be happy tomorrow, when he is happy tomorrow (it must be true in order to be considered knowledge), he is happy of his own free will. Solely having knowledge of his future happiness does not control his ability to be happy. St. Augustine states: “He has foreknowledge of our (will) power. Hence power is not taken away from me due to His foreknowledge – it is thus mine all the more certainly, since He whose foreknowledge does not err foreknew that it would be mine” (Augustine, 79).
Theodicy attempts to reconcile the existence and nature of God with evidence of evil in the world. Without evil, goodness could not exist. …show more content…
Certainly a determinist would agree that if God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, foreknowledge would be a necessary characteristic. Throughout the bible, God is shown to be a judge. “For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Romans 14:10). How are we to be judged for our actions by God when he already decided how we will act? The use of judgment language in the bible provides compelling evidence for a libertarian view but also the reason why free will was given to humans in the first place. According to the bible, everyone’s actions will be examined during the second coming of Jesus.
Another objection to my position could be if God is good and everything he creates is good, why is there evil in the world? If God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, surely He would be able to create a world in which evil does not