For the last few months I have been studying a metaphysics course. One of the bigger discussions in this field is whether our actions are determined (by the laws of nature as they actually are, by past events, etc.) or not.
Whilst roughly everyone else in my year level was completely closed to the idea of determinism on the grounds that it seemed to rule out the possibility of truly free actions and free will, I found myself somewhat inclined to it, introducing the idea that God, Who is not bound by the laws of nature that He instituted, gives us free will to choose Him in a similar way in which the pinball can be headed straight for the hole, but by tilting the table (my analogy for choosing God’s grace), we can alter the trajectory and do otherwise (i.e., avoid sin).
(On a side note, my lecturer did say there was some evidence to suggest that St. Augustine was a determinist, so the idea of determinism as being compatible with Christianity is not unimaginable.)
And so to the discussion part: My arguments are based solely on the study I have done on the topic since August, what arguments for or against (in)determinism do you have, and how might (in)determinism have a bearing on future theological study?