Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Free Will, Perception and Hegelian consciousness

(Originally written April 25, 2006 in 3 Subject)

Free Will vs. Determinism

The will is free when it is not impeded by anything to do as it pleases. I will myself to study philosophy; I choose it freely. But, when I must meet other obligations, such as eating something to survive, I am not free to study philosophy at the moment. It is true that I have the choice to eat or not eat, but if I choose to not eat enough times in a row the consequences would be disastrous. Thus, do the consequences of not eating determine my will? Or do I simply make the choice out of free will to eat? Yes. I have the choice (free-will) but something other than my will (my instinct to avoid hunger and thus death) determines the boundaries of my will.

Thus, I am free to make individual choices, but my overall outcome is determined by other things. This combination of determinism and free will governs all of my life.

Types of Perception"

-Perception of God - sensus divinitatis
-Perception of the physical realm (perception of living creatures and inanimate objects and material stuffs)
-Perception of the spiritual realm (natural and unnatural)
-Perception of the self (body)
-Perception of the mind (consciousness)
-Perception of the self (soul)

Hegelian consciousness and Creation:

Hegel may have been right in claiming that consciousness must exist in externalizing itself or manifesting itself with other consciousness. However, since God is triune, or three persons, He can manifest His consciousness with Himself since there are three consciousness in Himself. Thus, the creation of the world was not necessary for God to manifest His consciousness.

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