Augustine and Free Will
Augustine developed a philosophical underpinning for Christianity, shifting the world from one ruled by the Greek pantheon and a philosophy related to that pantheon to a Christian vision of the relationship between man and God. In doing so, he addressed the issue of free will, an issue that had been addressed as well by various Greek philosophers and that posed a problem in a world where God was omnipotent and also benign. The action of evil in the world was seen as a clear fact, and yet for this to be true, God had to allow evil, which in itself raised questions about the omnipotence of God. In Augustine's time, the new view of man was that the human being possessed a divine spark and was capable of discovering within himself the image of the infinite deity. Augustine would be considered a neo-Platonist who envisioned an ideal to which the imperfections of this world might aspire and of which this world was a reflection. He also recognized the need for free will in order for God to be justified in punishing human transgressors. Augustine as well sought to try to reconcile the idea of free choice with divine knowledge of the future, with a benign God that still allows bad things to happen.
The knowledge that he had free will gave him the strength to accept the responsibility that goes with it, but he still sought to reconcile these ideas with larger concepts of God as omniscient and omnipotent. Since God has doctrine over man, it follows that God has doctrine over the state. Both exercise free will in making this choice, though as always, it is not clear if such a choice can ever be free at all if it has been foreordained. An important element in Augustine's discussion of free will is the idea of original sin, still an important element in Catholic teaching. The individual does not have the free will to change the future but has the free will to accept responsibility. Under this doctrine, Adam and Eve possessed free will and so had the choice of sinning or not sinning. The choice they make is to accept God and to let Him help them make the choice not to sin. His discussion also depends heavily on how free will is defined, and it cannot be defined in the commonplace manner and still reconcile free will and determinism. In many ways, a discussion of free will versus determinism in a non-religious context involves fewer contradictions and paradoxes. The best secular city is one where the secular authority is guided by divine Christian wisdom, and this becomes the ideal for the state in this world. Because of original sin, no human being can choose not to sin without outside assistance. The only choice of real important is the choice to accept God and to take responsibility for one's actions, even if those actions are predestined. Government is charged with the task of establishing commonly accepted rules for acquiring the necessities of life. Early in his career, Augustine indeed rejected the idea of predestination, partially for this very reason, and he believed that the free will of man could decide his own destiny. The purpose of the state is to promote peace and prosperity among the people, and at the same time, it should also reflect only true religion.
Common topics in this essay:
City God,
God God,
Free Augustine,
Extended God,
Adam Eve,
God Augustine's,
,
God Church,
Confessions Augustine,
Augustine Platonic,
free choice,
choice accept god,
freedom augustine,
choice accept,
augustine considered,
free accept,
god doctrine,
free augustine,
discussion free,
god happen happen,
god omnipotent,
augustine refers,
|
Acceptance Essays
