Musings

Today I helped my friend, whom I work for, with hosting the “Extreme Tour”, which was held at a suburban Columbus stake park. I was there at 9am to start the setup and had everything ready to roll when the skate team showed to do a competition with the local kids. At 1pm the bands (five) arrived and begin setting up their gear. The first band began performing at 2:10. At 2:20 people started to show up for the bands. At 2:30 the heavens let loose. Show over.

The tour has a pastoral theme to it and most are very open at their faith. One person, who I had been answering questions – as best I could – on Catholic theology said, “I know God has a reason for everything that happens, but I don’t know why he would want to rain out our show.” To which I gave an agreeing shrug. Only I don’t.

First I was struck by the amazing self-centered arrogance it takes to think that a larger thunder cell that poured on more than 500,000 people as it moved east across northern Franklin county was solely for stopping are show. The other 499,800 people where just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Right.

But I was still bothered by his comment. Then it came to me. Free Will. His statement, as innocent as it was certainly meant, was in fact a denial of free will. How so is that we humans have domain over the weather. Our influence at this time may not be that great, but we have changed weather patterns. We can seed clouds, pollutants, emissions, great urban areas that act as heat sink. We have micro and macro influences. The good or bad of this influence is completely moot with regards to my point.

Which is, since we have influence on the weather, for the rain to have hit us as part of Gods plan then Gods plan includes the manipulation of men so that our actions cause, through the butterfly effect, the rain to be in Gahanna at 2:30pm, May 28th, 2005, and if God is doing that then there is no free will.

If there is no free will then we are no more responsible for our actions than those of a gear in some machine. A gear that bears no accountability on the smooth working or failing of the machine that it neither designed or maintains. And to be honest, I don’t like the idea of a world without free will, for that is a world lacking both sin and virture.