Fate, Is every thing we do already planned out? I have always thought that fate was real because if God knows every thing he has to know what we are going to do which makes fate real right? I just want to know what every one else thinks.
Thats a very interesting topic, im not really sure. I think we do have free will but 'god', being infinite, would know all of our possible actions. But infinity or 'god' deifies all logic so there is an infinite amount of answers to this question and know way of knowing.
Fate the inevitability of events. It is fate I will die though is it my fate to die tomorrow or in 50 years. I don;t believe fate exists though. It insinuates something higher or extra when any random course of events can happen. I suppose it is like the final Destination series but I do hope that things aren't always inevitable. because it is just a self pitying excuse. You go bankrupt but you believe in fate so was it your fault? no it was inevitable you had no control over what happened.
Fate is just a way to pass the blame. Everything is just the result of a series of events that then becomes part of a series of events that turns into something else. I guess you could not say the future is set in stone intil it becomes the past.
I agree with this, believing that everything is set in stone before it happens allows one to abdicate all responsibility in the circumstances of their life. Now I think it is something different entirely to recognize meaning in the happenings of life, taking bad events as lessons etc.
I thought I might throw in a few ideas. This is a good topic, at least philosophically, and the implications about the role god plays in fate are also important. I'll present a few problems with having fate - maybe you guys can run with it.
1) God vs. Fate God is omniscient, meaning god knows everything. If that is the case, then god should know what we're going to do. But if god knows what we're going to do, then we must be fated in some way to do that, which means we don't actually have free will. The result of this is that either a) god must not really be totally omniscient, or b) we can't be held responsible for our actions since we are fated to do them.
2) Fate vs. Certainty What does it mean for something to be fated versus something being certain. Consider what would happen if I held a ball in my hand and then dropped in. Is it fated that it will hit the ground, or merely certain (assuming nothing interferes)?
3) Fate and Logical Necessity We can envision other events happening that didn't actually happen. Like, I can imagine what would happen if I went outside my apartment and threw myself down the stairs. This is a logical possibility that may or may not obtain. But if we are fated to do certain things, it would seem like these actions are somehow either logically or causally necessary. But if that's the case, we should be able to predict what will happen either with the natural sciences or logical proof. But we can't... why?
Maybe you guys can run with this stuff. Also, bonus points for anyone who can bring in Leibniz to the debate - and do so cogently.
1) God vs. Fate God is omniscient, meaning god knows everything. If that is the case, then god should know what we're going to do. But if god knows what we're going to do, then we must be fated in some way to do that, which means we don't actually have free will.
I was thinking about this from a slightly different angle. Does fate apply to God? If we assume time is linear, destiny exists and that God is omniscient, then God already knows what choices he will make and so effectively has no free will.
A good deal of this relates to the existence of a higher power-if there is one, then fate could very well exist. If not, the insinuation would be invalid, and would be unlikely. I don't believe in fate. . .it's like a crutch, if anything. But fate could exist if time is relative to space and the Big Crunch is true, because then time would flow backwards and forwards infinitely-meaning our actions would already be set out. But, I personsally believe fate is a myth
I've had a few philosophical debates on the subject, none of them have to do with god, because it becomes quite boring very quickly - one of your responses is pretty close to what I've discussed Moe:
Essentially - all of the things that have occured in the world so far; every event in history, all of the people that are born and exist today, the manner in which they were raised, grew up, where they were born, who they interacted with all construct the person that they are today.
The actions that I will make today are in a way, fated to happen because of what has happened to create who I am, today. I might be early for something, late for something, I might be a poor driver, I might be promiscuous, I might be celibate - but all of these things together create what sorts of actions I will take independantly, and are also going to govern the decisions I will make when presented with them from external sources. Those decisions are.. in a way, fated - because given the exact same set of circumstances, I will always have made the same decision at that precise point in time.
There was a fascinating book I read on a similar subject - "A New Kind of Science" by author Stephen Wolfram. His postulate was that the universe could very easily, be made of a simple set of rules; and given those rules, starting from the beginning, you could chart out everything that will ever happen - unfortunately, the simulation to figure out what's going to happen next would have to be computationally equivalent (processed *everything* to get to that point) and is quite impossible by today's standards. In the book he shows how a very simple set of rules can generate incredibly complex, and seemingly, chaotic patterns in computer simulations. Cool read.
In my opinion fate isn't exactly real, because we humans have the ability to make rational and irrational choices for example "Should I take the fork on the right or the one on the left?" (Talking about a fork in the road.} If fate exists in the way that most people think of it, we wouldn't have choices to make everything would be planned out for us from the second we were born, there would be no mystery or adventure in life.
well some Christians believe in predestination. So whatever they do, it doesn't matter. It is an interesting matter because the idea of being in control of your own destiny is a self motivating factor. When the person is not in control, they lose interest in doing "good".
Interesting question. Well I don't think our whole lives are planned out because I think of doing one thing then I do something else. So if god is doing that then I am scared.
