Freedom to Choose Between Good and Evil: Theological Anthropology in Discussion with Philosophy

Authors

  • Matej Kováčik Protestant Theological Faculty, Charles University, Prague

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24204/ejpr.v12i4.3521

Abstract

After a brief discussion of the terms determinism and free will, the paper sets out to compare some recent philosophical approaches to the problem of free will with a theological anthropology account of the notion. It aims to defend the claim, that even though different kind of questions are asked on both sides, they tackle similar issues and a complementary approach is needed. Recent philosophy considers the problem mostly from the standpoint of logic, naturalist evolutionary ontology and cognitive science. In the Christian theological tradition, the idea of free will has been discussed mostly from the perspective of the problem of sin and grace, thus on the grounds of soteriology, hamartiology and theological ethics. The paper shows similarities between the approaches, mainly between the problem of physical determinism and theological determinism and also divine foreknowledge.

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Published

2020-12-30

How to Cite

Kováčik, Matej. 2020. “Freedom to Choose Between Good and Evil: Theological Anthropology in Discussion With Philosophy”. European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 12 (4):95-115. https://doi.org/10.24204/ejpr.v12i4.3521.

Issue

Section

How Discernment between Good and Evil shapes the Dynamics of the Human Journey