Why do we have a mind of our own?

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phil8888

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My mother brought up an interesting topic last night, but I wasn’t actually in the conversation. She asked rhetorically why God gave her a brain if he didn’t expect her to make her own decisions. She was referring to the Church and wondering why she can’t decide on her own for various issues. Then she said when the Church has synods, the pope and bishops ask questions and they bring in different people from different backgrounds to find the answers, and that they don’t just randomly make pronouncements. She said if they have to ask questions and find answers, why can’t we as individuals do that. I have some responses I could potentially give her, but I was wondering if anyone could add anything. Thanks.
 
Well we have brains and the capability to make our own decisions because God loves us and loves us enough to give us the free choice whether or not to love Him. Our love would be worthless unless it was freely given.

Popes and bishops are not interested in different people with different experiences, they are interested in the Truth. Though, odd that your mother seems to think that all Popes and bishops don’t have different experiences and backgrounds :p. They look at each matter, go through the Bible and find passages that relate to it or are similar and make a decision regarding right and wrong based on divine revelation. It isn’t from them, it is from God through them.

She does have the freedom to make her own choices. She can do whatever she likes. The Church tells us what is right and moral to do, whether or not we follow that is our own choice. They do not force people to go to Mass, use NFP instead of condoms or help those in need. The Church simply tells us what God has revealed as right and it is up to us whether or not to accept that.
 
phil8888 said:
My mother brought up an interesting topic last night, but I wasn’t actually in the conversation. She asked rhetorically why God gave her a brain if he didn’t expect her to make her own decisions. She was referring to the Church and wondering why she can’t decide on her own for various issues. Then she said when the Church has synods, the pope and bishops ask questions and they bring in different people from different backgrounds to find the answers, and that they don’t just randomly make pronouncements. She said if they have to ask questions and find answers, why can’t we as individuals do that. I have some responses I could potentially give her, but I was wondering if anyone could add anything. Thanks.
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God gave us all a brain and therefore free will because He loves us so much and wants us to love Him in return. Our love is worthless unless it is freely given.

The reason the pope and bishops ask questions and find out the answers is because they are qualified to do so. If I wanted to know about koalas I would round up a bunch of biologists, not physicists. Same with theology and morality, theology questions get answered by theologians. Getting the laity to do so would be like getting physicists to answer all my questions about koalas. They might be able to get a few good answers, but they are not the best in that field, why settle for anything but the best?
 
I like Adrianna’s comment above.

We all have free will to do as we choose. I believe when we use our free will to choose God and when we use our abilities to glorify him further that we experience what it is to be fully human.
 
praise_Jesus said:
I like Adrianna’s comment above.

We all have free will to do as we choose. I believe when we use our free will to choose God and when we use our abilities to glorify him further that we experience what it is to be fully human.
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I just thought that I believe is God chose us, because we are blessed 🙂

Why?:curtsey:
Seriously, why do we have a mind of our own?
 
phil8888 said:
My mother brought up an interesting topic last night, but I wasn’t actually in the conversation. She asked rhetorically why God gave her a brain if he didn’t expect her to make her own decisions. She was referring to the Church and wondering why she can’t decide on her own for various issues. Then she said when the Church has synods, the pope and bishops ask questions and they bring in different people from different backgrounds to find the answers, and that they don’t just randomly make pronouncements. She said if they have to ask questions and find answers, why can’t we as individuals do that. I have some responses I could potentially give her, but I was wondering if anyone could add anything. Thanks.
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She can certainly make all the decisions she wants on her own, regardless of what the Church teaches. This is called “free will”. She can freely choose to go against the Church, if she so desires. The Church is simply telling us the truth of Jesus’ teachings for the benefit of our own salvation. Your mother has a brain and free will to either accept to deny that truth.
 
RosaryFan said:
She can certainly make all the decisions she wants on her own, regardless of what the Church teaches. This is called “free will”. She can freely choose to go against the Church, if she so desires. The Church is simply telling us the truth of Jesus’ teachings for the benefit of our own salvation. Your mother has a brain and free will to either accept to deny that truth.
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I just thought Truth is Turth,

Why did you not think she cannot choose?
 
What if someone in doctor’s training asked why can’t I make my own decisions about teating patients if God gave me a mind. So they say something is not good, but if I follow them, I am not using my God-given mind? Or perhaps if I follow road signs when I am driving, I am not using my God-given intelligence? The Church too deals with reality, and providing your own reality can be a disaster for the same reason.
That doesn’t mean we can’t use our own minds. The threads on Catholic Answers are instructive about this. There are many questions not settled by the Church, in fact if you go through the threads it may seem an endless set of questions we must settle for ourselves.
Christ established the Church to settle some questions, though, so that for one thing, we are led into a pit.
 
mdgspencer said:
What if someone in doctor’s training asked why can’t I make my own decisions about teating patients if God gave me a mind. So they say something is not good, but if I follow them, I am not using my God-given mind? Or perhaps if I follow road signs when I am driving, I am not using my God-given intelligence? The Church too deals with reality, and providing your own reality can be a disaster for the same reason.
That doesn’t mean we can’t use our own minds. The threads on Catholic Answers are instructive about this. There are many questions not settled by the Church, in fact if you go through the threads it may seem an endless set of questions we must settle for ourselves.
Christ established the Church to settle some questions, though, so that for one thing, we are led into a pit.
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I just remembered doctors are made by God too 🙂

Why should patients make their own decisions?
 
You have a mind so that you can use what information you gain from whatever source, including the CC, and apply it to your own individual situation.

Everyone has their own life to lead and circumstances. Everyone is provided with as much information as can be reasonably delivered so they can use that information and balance it into the moment by moment decisions that could not be done by anyone else (micro-managed).

Being provided with “facts” does not change what your mind still must do. It merely provides for a less dangerous means to discover those “facts”.
 
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