Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site uw-june Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!floyd!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!uw-june!palmer From: palmer@uw-june (David Palmer) Newsgroups: net.religion Subject: Re: Omniscience vs. Free Will (again!) Message-ID: <1024@uw-june> Date: Thu, 23-Feb-84 11:57:51 EST Article-I.D.: uw-june.1024 Posted: Thu Feb 23 11:57:51 1984 Date-Received: Fri, 24-Feb-84 02:37:39 EST References: <844@ssc-vax.UUCP> <6806@unc.UUCP> Organization: U. Washington, Computer Sci Lines: 22 <> An interesting question to ask (and the road to Hell is paved with interesting questions >:-) ) is whether an omniscient G-d* has free will. Since he knows everything he is ever going to do, he obviously cannot choose to do something different. One answer to this is that G-d had free will once, but then, being omnipotent, he gave himself omniscience, and thereby lost free will. He used up all of his free will in that one act, but that act was a result of free will. Some philosophers (e.g. Leibnitz) have suggested that, being omnibenevolent, G-d is constrained to one course of action, that which has the best results ("all is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds." as Candide said). I agree with Voltaire that this is a pretty pessimistic view of the world. David Palmer ---- * G-d is a trademark of "The Moral Majority", and may not be used without its permission :-)