Luigi,
I get your position, but I don't think God decides whether I eat peas or corn for dinner.
If God is God, then he most certainly decided that you WILL eat one or the other - you have no choice, it was already known to God which one you would choose -
- or are you saying that there is some future event in your life that God does not know the outcome?
That would fly in the face and contradict every belief about God's power, vision, and knowledge.
Pima said:
Are you implying that Whistle believes God decided his veggies?
No, the opposite - Whistle Pig stated that man has free will.
The real question has to be - did God decide which veggies WP would choose?
Absolutely, without question! We cannot believe that God only directs us in "big things" and ignores the "little things" can we? An omnipotent omniscient being (the very definition of God) must know everything that will ever happen. If he didn't know something (the outcome of your or WP's vegetable choice) he wouldn't be God, because that would be something he didn't know.
Pima said:
I believe in God, but I also believe I have free will to a point. I think if I choose Captain Crunch over Cheerios it is not the same as if I married someone else.
Then you must believe that God does not know everything. Because if you had a choice, that would mean that God didn't know what you would do. And that cannot happen, as God knows EVERYTHING in advance.
And let's get even deeper into theological philosophy - since your choice of vegetables or cereal or husband had already been pre-ordained by God when God created the Universe, you cannot change the choice, nor can God! Even God, as defined by every major religion throughout history, cannot have free will!
And prayer cannot change God's choice, as that would imply that God made the wrong decision or choice when he originally ordained your choice.
It's one of those mobius loops (a paradox) that cannot be escaped.
Logically, either:
- God and humans have no free will, prayer cannot change the outcome.
- God is not all-knowing/all-powerful, or
- There is no God.
I'll go with #1.
PS - I'll bow out, I think I've given everyone enough to think about.