Free Will

There are a lot of questions about free will that come up all the time. If God intervenes because we prayed for him to, doesn't that take away the free will of someone else? (For example, if we pray that we get a job that someone else wanted, and God intervenes and helps us get the job.)

If God is all knowing, and knows what will happen in our lives before we do... doesn't that mean our lives are predestined?

If God gave us free will, why does he punish us for using it? (If we sin. How is it free will if there are rules?)

It's a hard concept to understand, and I'm not an apologist. A Catholic Apologist is someone who is an expert in Catholic theology, however let me try to explain it in the way I understand it.

Free will is misinterpreted. The main point of free will isn't "Do what you want, no consequences". The reason God gave us free will was because he wanted us to love him, but he didn't want us to love him because we were programed to. He wants us to give ourselves to him freely and knowingly. He wants us to choose to be good rather than evil.

It's not meant to be a free for all. Even with God, there are consequences for our actions. You choose to sin, you must face the consequences. You choose to do wrong, you must face his just punishment.

It's like theft. You don't have to walk into someone's yard and steal their kid's bike, but because of free will, you can. But you will go to jail for the theft. Just as someone doesn't have to get involved if they know you did it, but if they use their free will to report the theft, they could be given a small reward by the child's parents for the good deed.

Our choices, which are freely ours to make, will have consequences, both good and bad, both legal (Man made laws) and moral (God's laws)

So you have free will to choose to do good or evil, to choose to love God or deny him. But you have to remember that there are consequences, just as there was for Adam and Eve. They had free will to do whatever they wanted. The only rule was, "do not eat the fruit of one Tree". God didn't stop them from doing it, he gave them the test. How will they use the gift of free will he gave them? They used their free will to disobey God, and they were punished for what they did, much like someone who steals a bike is punished for their act.

But the main purpose of Free Will is more about our freedom to accept or reject God than it is if we have fish or steak for dinner. He gave us the choice to love him, or deny him, because he didn't want to be worshiped by force. He wants us to love him because we love him.

Then comes the questions of miracles. Why does God intercede in certain situations? What if he helps someone get a job because they prayed hard about it, doesn't that take away the free will of someone else vying for that job?

Miracles are never made to the detriment of another person, or to take away anyone's free will. Miracles are made to remind us that God is here and he loves us. It's to show people a light that there is more to this world than the hardships we face. It's a tap on the shoulder to try to turn his children back to him after they've walked away. It's about hope, it's about love. 

You've probably heard someone say "Everything happens for a reason". That's how miracles work. They're not meant to remove someone else's free will or to spurn one person for another. There is a purpose for all involved when God intervenes. There's a lesson in there, or a nudge back to God in there, or healing in there.

God doesn't want to take away our free will or put one person above another... God's miracles and intervention are his ways of showing us his love. If he wanted to take away our free will, he'd constantly be intervening and forcing us to do what he knows is right. It would be like me standing in front of two doors, and he removes one of the doors so I didn't have to choose which one to enter. I'd just do what he wanted, because he made the choice for me. That has never been God's way. So Miracles have nothing to do with free will or overstepping the gift he gave us.

Of course there is still a question about predestination. God is all knowing. He knows the beginning, he knows the end. He knows what we are going to do before we do it, is the common thinking. However that is not what I've gotten out of studying theology.

I think God knows everything... He knows from the moment we're conceived, our left and our right. He knows all the outcomes of every move we make, but it's still our choice to make. 

For example, Back to those two doors I mentioned earlier. One is marked "Do Not Enter" and one is marked "Welcome". God knows what will happen behind each door, but I am still free to choose which door to open and accept the consequences that follow.

So while God does know everything, he knows the outcome of both sides of the coin we toss... he still lets use choose. So our lives are not predestined. We are still free to make our own choices.

It's a heavy responsibility and it's very hard to understand at times... but that is what faith is all about.

We need to use the choices we are given to be good people, do good for others, help those in need, and love God with all our hearts and remember how much he loves us.

I hope this makes it somewhat easier to understand.

God bless

- I Say Amen -