Religion Does getting closer to god reduce free will?

[deaf_judger]

What is Free Will?
I think that free will needs three things:

1. you must be able to choose otherwise
   
   
2. the choice must not annihilate the chooser(like how they died on Horeb)
   
   
3. you must not have perfect certainty about the ultimate moral reality.
   
   

If an agent has absolute certainty (of what good is, what reality demands, and that disobedience is wrong), then choosing otherwise is structurally incoherent. it is not a live possibility for a rational mind.




What is God?

God = infinite reality + infinite goodness + infinite authority

So proximity to got is proximity to absolute truth, moral clarity. But free will depends on uncertainty?




Total Proximity Destroys Free Will
We have three levels of proximity:




Normal Humans
Moral ambiguity exists, and so do competing values. God is inferred, argued, doubted
-> Maximal free will




Prophets
God is experientially real and authority is undeniable. Moral truth is clear. BUT: mediation still exists(moses' argument with god, jonah)
-> Free will constrained:
This happens because the revelation is filtered.




Direct
A direct divine broadcast delivers absolute moral certainty. Now, alternative possibilities vanish, and rejecting god would mean rejecting reality.
[therefore] A direct divine broadcast delivers absolute moral certainty. disobedience becomes cognitively impossible.




<???>
This is why god stays hidden and doesnt appear?


@Ishmael

 

[Giant Wyrm]

Seems like God doesn't let me have free will

 

[Loner]

God is a shape-shifting reptilian

 

[Schwarzwald]

What is Free Will?
I think that free will needs three things:

1. you must be able to choose otherwise
   
2. the choice must not annihilate the chooser(like how they died on Horeb)
   
3. you must not have perfect certainty about the ultimate moral reality.
   

If an agent has absolute certainty (of what good is, what reality demands, and that disobedience is wrong), then choosing otherwise is structurally incoherent. it is not a live possibility for a rational mind.




What is God?



So proximity to got is proximity to absolute truth, moral clarity. But free will depends on uncertainty?




Total Proximity Destroys Free Will
We have three levels of proximity:




Normal Humans
Moral ambiguity exists, and so do competing values. God is inferred, argued, doubted
-> Maximal free will




Prophets
God is experientially real and authority is undeniable. Moral truth is clear. BUT: mediation still exists(moses' argument with god, jonah)
-> Free will constrained:
This happens because the revelation is filtered.




Direct
A direct divine broadcast delivers absolute moral certainty. Now, alternative possibilities vanish, and rejecting god would mean rejecting reality.
[therefore] A direct divine broadcast delivers absolute moral certainty. disobedience becomes cognitively impossible.




<???>
This is why god stays hidden and doesnt appear?


@Ishmael

I think the 'Proximity' argument assumes we are losing something we want to keep. But if you look at it as 'House Rules,' the closer you get to God, the more your free will simply evolves into alignment.
This is the heart of Theosis—the process of being restored and transformed. If you’re a guest who loves the Host, taking your shoes off isn't a loss of choice; it’s a natural response to being in a space you value. Proximity doesn't make disobedience 'impossible' through force; it makes it 'incoherent' because, through repentance and grace, your old desires are written off and your new ones are aligned with the Truth. You aren't losing your will; you're finally finding a reality where you actually want to be part of the Household.