Do we have free will really?

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Pathway2

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I was reading Watchman (for research), and I may have lost my faith given the idea that we might actually be puppets according to a script. There is no free will and we cannot do anything about it. We would good to heaven or Hell regardless.
 
What’s a Watchman and what authority does he/she/it possess?
 
Please do not listen to Watchman. We do have free will. We are called to follow God’s will in life.
 
It is a DC produce product or products. written by Alan Moore and Illustrated Dave Gibbons.
 
So a comic book can undermine your faith in the almighty God? Really?
Dude! Inhale deeply. Count to ten. Look out the window on the glorious world that surrounds you. And throw away the trash you are reading into the trash bin. Where it belongs.
 
Thank you. also, also, It is not trash. it is something what creators had produced. Questions need to be asked about the world around us. We need to confront opinions as well as persisting and spiritually growing.
 
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OK. Not trash. Haven’t read it myself. However, I did just read some reviews online. Seems that it is a bit of escapism. And that’s fine. But a bit of phantasy should not hold sway over your world view.
There are a lot of stories being told. Many are told for purely commercial reasons. Some for purely evil reasons. Some are told to uplift and help you grow. We get exposed to all of these and all of them influence us in different ways. I argue that we should give more credence to those that provide a guiding light and help us grow.
 
Pathway2 said:
I was reading Watchman (for research), and I may have lost my faith given the idea that we might actually be puppets according to a script.
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Its trash for you, thats for sure. Dont read such things if they weaken or destroy faith.
 
“Do we have free will really?”

Yes, we do.

Disclaimer – I am expressing my opinion and not looking for validaiton or argument, so I limit my (name removed by moderator)ut to a single post per thread. Send me a PM, and I will be happy to continue the discussion without monopolizing this fine venue.
 
The question of free will or moral liberty is probably one of the top problems people have wrestled with throughout time, from the early Greeks through the history of Christianity, to modern day. Much too important to place in the pages of one modern, graphic novel.

If this causes you to question or “lose” your faith, you really need to seek out the and read information affirming free will to have a balanced understanding.
 
I hope we are not overwhelming you with this barrage of comments, but … here goes. A quote that seems pertinent.
“That which you call your soul or spirit is your consciousness, and that which you call “free will” is your mind’s freedom to think or not, the only will you have, your only freedom, the choice that controls all the choices you make and determines your life and your character.”
The key word here is FREEDOM. There are plenty of actors out there who make it their business to take away this freedom we have, so they can control us better and make us do what they wish. Think about our incessant shopping. Populations are easily controlled when they stop to think and question. I think you should question everything, including the idea of Free Will. The conclusions you will come to will influence your world view and your ideas about your place in the universe.
 
If you did not have free will, you could not ask the question. You certainly would not be upset by it.

Of course we have free will.
 
Pathway2 said:
I was reading Watchman (for research), and I may have lost my faith given the idea that we might actually be puppets according to a script. There is no free will and we cannot do anything about it. We would good to heaven or Hell regardless.
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It is possible to act without compulsion by cooperating with actual grace.
 
Also, you should be aware that Alan Moore (although very smart and a good writer) is not the sort of person to take as a guide. He is currently an occultist, more than anything.

And obviously if he believes in changing the world through magic, you can see that he believes that he has free will. So why would you believe something that even Alan Moore just threw in as local color?

Watchmen makes a very strong impression, but it falls apart if you look at it closely. If you know much about the US in the past, you will.see that his alternate history is pretty thin and unconvincing, and betrays an English sort of ignorance. If you know much about psychiatry, you see that his portrayal of psychiatrists is silly. None of the characters are allowed to be alive and smart in their own way; they all are limited to Alan Moore functions.

So it is set up a lot like those thought problems about people tied to traintracks, where they are constructed to trap you into something you don’t believe. But if you look at things from another angle, the whole problem collapses.

This is very nostalgic. I had a friend who had a Rohrschach-like character in his superhero stuff, and it was very easy to poke holes into.
 
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Pathway2 said:
There is no free will and we cannot do anything about it. We would good to heaven or Hell regardless.
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Jesus saved everyone and paid for everyone’s sins. Salvation is a gift. The problem is that, like any gift, the gift of salvation can be lost, squandered or rejected altogether. God’s will is for all to be saved, but salvation is contingent on us allowing God to save us. God calls you to repent, to forgive, and not to hate; but you are free to not repent, you are free to not love, and you are free to not forgive.

Faith without works is dead; choosing to forgive from the heart, choosing to repent of one’s sins, and choosing to love instead of hate, are all possible if you call on God’s Grace. All can choose to be open to God’s grace, or to be closed to it.

God is outside of time, thus He knows the outcome of what happens in time. He knows if you were opened or closed to His grace; but the choice is all yours. Salvation is contingent on our individual choices.

A farmer is destined to be killed by the wolf, provided he forgets to take his rifle. The farmer is destined to kill the wolf provided he takes his rifle. The farmer is destined to remember to take his rifle provided his wife prayed for him to have a safe journey. Things in life are contingent on us acting upon situations in time; the proverbial fork in the road.

You are destined to pollute your mind and contaminate your thinking provided you choose to look at pornography, watch bad movies and read poisonous books. You are destined to grow in holiness provided you drink from the fountains of sanctifying grace provided to us in the through the sacraments, and begin the journey to unmask and uproot everything in your heart and life that separates you from God and neighbor. Sin separates us from God. you are destined to be saved provided you choose to be open to God’s grace, fight to reject sin and strive for virtue. It’s all up to you.

An entire generation of people is destined to exist, provided a woman chooses to not kill her own baby. The power and ramifications of free will are incomprehensibly vast, thus we will be held responsible for the choices we make.

“Free will without grace has the power to do nothing but sin”-St Augustine
 
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It is clear from the scripture that God wants all people to be saved. Sadly, because of our free will, scripture shows this will not be the case.

“Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.” (Isaiah 45:22)

“…who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (I Timothy 2:4)

Yes, we really do have free will, but some have a will which is opposed to God’s.
 
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