Many philosophers have struggled to make their philosophies align with the human concept of free will. Cosmology and the matter of religion are two areas in which contradictions arise between the belief in the distinctly human trait of free will and the belief in a higher power. Philosophers have taken many different approaches in their attempts to elucidate the matter of free will. Two philosophers who explain free will in the context of divine powers are the Roman Stoic Epictetus (55-135 CE) and the Christian philosopher Saint Augustine (354-430 CE). While both of these philosophers believed in the existence of God, their definitions of religion beyond this point diverge. Epictetus, on one hand, held the pantheistic belief that God is everywhere and in everything, and is inseparable from nature.1 Saint Augustine, on the other hand, believed after converting to Christianity that God is perfect and is the creator of all things and that he exists outside of the natural world.2 Within each of their respective religions Epictetus and Saint Augustine grapple with their belief in human free will and how humans came to possess such a quality. Despite the contrast between the religions of Pantheism and Christianity, the two philosophers’ explanations for how and why humans have been granted free will share many similarities.
In the form of Pantheism believed by Stoics, God is not separated from nature, and is therefore not concerned with human sin or prayers. Because of God’s existence within everything and everyone, Epictetus asserts that the human role in the universe is acting as a part of the whole. This “whole” in the pantheistic view is governed by reason, not chance. In Epictetus’s words, “The universe is powerful and superior and consults the best for us by governing us in conjunction with the whole”.3 This supports the Stoic belief that there is no difference between the way things are and the way things ought to be. However, if humans are simply acting as a part of the whole, this does not leave much room for the concept of self-determination. Self-determination, or the idea that humans have a conscious agency over their life, is not easily separated from the idea of free will.
To rectify this seeming contradiction, Epictetus brings Pantheistic beliefs together with the Stoic idea of duty. According to Epictetus and the Stoics, all humans have a duty to fulfill their role as a part of a greater whole. This duty, however, relies on the God-given gift of “The Will”, which distinguishes humans from all other life.4 Epictetus argues that God has given humans the faculty of decision so that they may use their will to fulfill their duty or go against it. Describing the nature of the will, Epictetus says “And what has the natural power of retraining the will? Nothing beyond itself, only its own perversion. Therefore in the Will alone is vice: in the Will alone is virtue”.5 Epictetus maintains that the will is something of divine creation, but that the ability to manipulate the will is purely human. It is in this context that Epictetus is able to insist upon the existence of free will as harmonious with God and nature.
Like Epictetus, the Christian Saint Augustine also believed that the divine power of God controlled the events of the universe, including granting humans free will. This is similar to the Pantheistic belief of the Stoics that it is not chance, but a greater plan that determines the course of life. However, Augustine has distinct ideas about the form of God and the ways in which he governs the universe. In Augustine’s view, God is a benevolent entity above all other things, and is the supreme decision-maker. Augustine says of God’s creations: “All things that exist, therefore, seeing that the creator of them all is supremely good, are themselves good”.6 As He is the decider of all things, it is also through God’s power that humans have the ability to become more or less good, according to Augustine. Augustine explains how humans are able to be influenced by outside temptations, saying, “But because they are not, like their Creator, supremely and unchangeably good, their good may be diminished and increased”.7 By asserting that humans are inconstant beings, Augustine lays the groundwork for explaining free will in the context of God.
Having established God’s omnipotence, Augustine describes how human free will is the work of God. The concept of human free will, by definition, insists upon the ability to act without the control of external forces. This, however, does not easily align with Augustine’s idea of a God who is all-knowing. In an attempt to rectify this contradiction, Augustine introduces the idea of multiple causation. In this idea, just because God knows all that you will do in this life does not mean he is causing you to do those things. By this logic, human choice is a human responsibility, despite the possibility of choice being God’s creation. This definition works to explain the existence of free will under an omnipotent and omniscient God but does not save the contradictions present in Augustine’s pronouncement that God is supremely good.
Based on Augustine’s assertions about God one would conclude that if he is truly benevolent and all-powerful then there would be no evil in the world. However, in the course of human history, people have often used their free will to commit evil acts or sins. In the pantheistic philosophy of Epictetus, the existence of a balance between good and evil causes no conflict. This is because, according to Epictetus, “All things serve and obey the [laws of the] universe; the earth, the sea, the sun, the stars, and the plants and animals of the earth”.8 In Epictetus’s Pantheism, the state of all things is in harmony with God, including the influence of human free will. In his Christian philosophy, however, Augustine must in some way account for the existence of evil in the world. He does this by arguing that although God’s divine plan is ultimately good, he intentionally allows some evil in the world to achieve his benevolent plan.
In Augustine’s view, the all-knowing God must have virtuous intentions behind allowing the existence of evil in the world because God himself is undeniably good. Here, Augustine asserts a similar concept to that of Epictetus, explaining the balance and harmony of God’s plan. Both Epictetus and Augustine maintain that it is through God’s power that both good and evil exist in nature. However, in Augustine’s explanation, any evil allowed by God is a means to serve the greater good. Specifically, in the context of humans, Augustine explores the reasoning behind God’s allowance of the possibility of sin in human nature. He states that “The will of God, which is always good, is sometimes fulfilled through the evil will of man”.9 Through the insistence on God’s ultimate plan serving only the good, Augustine is able to amend the inconsistencies between a benevolent and omnipotent God and the existence of human free will and sin.
Epictetus and Saint Augustine practiced different philosophies in wildly different time periods, and their religious beliefs of Pantheism and Christianity do not align in many ways. Epictetus believed in a God that was harmonious with nature and that lived as a part of all things. Saint Augustine, on the other hand, believed in a supreme God that existed above all life, and that held the power of supreme knowledge and benevolence. These religious differences impacted the way the two philosophers grappled with the concept of human free will. Despite these differences, however, the assertions of each philosopher on how and why humans possess free will have striking similarities. In both philosophers’ views, human free will is a gift from God. And in both Epictetus’s and Augustine’s beliefs, this gift of free will must agree with the Pantheistic laws of the universe or the Christian divine providence of God.
1. Epictetus, The Works of Epictetus, t.r. T.W. Higginson, Boston, Little, Brown, 1866.
2. Augustine, Enchiridion, t.r. J.F. Shaw, from The Works of Aurelius Augustine, vol. IX, Rev. Marcus Dods, ed., Edinburgh, T. & T. Clark, 1892.
3. Epictetus, The Works of Epictetus, p427.
4. Ibid., p179.
5. Ibid., p179.
6. Augustine, Augustine, Enchiridion, p182.
7. Ibid., p182.
8. Epictetus, The Works of Epictetus, p427.
9. Augustine, Augustine, Enchiridion, p246.