Part 2: Human Freedom
Chapter 2: You are what you do?
Part 1: Development of ‘self ‘
Catholic teaching refers to the human person as being at once physical and spiritual (CCC #362)
“The Lord God formed man out of dust from the ground. And breathed into his nostrils
The Catechism describes the ‘soul’ as our ‘innermost aspect’ and ‘what which is of the greatest value’ n us The soul, it says, signifies our ‘spiritual principles’ ( CCC, #363)
Freedom
Introductory questions
1. Why it’s it that humans beings, and not animals are only able to act morally
2. Define a human action
3. Is freedom limited?
4. What’s the difference between freedom and licentiousness?
5. Does grace diminish freedom?
Freedom and Catechism
Generic definition: the ability to do what one likes
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 1731): freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own responsibility by free will, one shapes one’s will
Human Freedom
When you exercise your freedom , the action that results make change or mark in the world
Changed in your core
In some ways; being free means we are not complete
We can embrace the future, by giving our word action
Freedom with responsibility
Our freedom has the capacity to turn away and even alienate us from God, ourselves and others. This is what we call SIN
Freedom comes with responsibility
-freedom involves the core of human existence
- Freedom can go contrary to its own source and destroy itself- freedom reach if infinite
Some philosophy say freedom does not exist
They think everything can be explained by a physical or chemical process, that’s the concept of naturalism
What is naturalism?
Naturalism would suggest that everything can be explained by physical, biological, psychological, social or environment process
Also understands the material universe as unified and interconnected
Everything has a physical cause and human agent just tends to be more complex physical cause
Humans are part of the evolutionary process and we are simply a part of the material universe
Everything, including humans are connected by cause and effect
Science
Science rules here. Everything must be explain by experimentation
If something is true, then it must be proven with concrete evidence
Example: human genome project
Genetic research, particularly lay claim that “ it’s all in your genes”
The human genome project shows that the human itself is not an intended itself
1. Naturalism
Neural mechanics and genetic determinism challenge the notion of self
These schools of thought would say there is no human spirit or culture
Freedom is an illusion, because actions are not free they are the result of brain process
Naturalism denies human freedom- it maintains that your promises and commitments do not come from motives or intentions but from a genetic disposition
Naturalism denies the possibility of ethics and morality
Can you be responsible for your actions if what you do is a natural physical process over which you have no control
Think about lethal concepts such as free will, guilt, innocence, mitigating factors- what happens when naturalism is concerned?
What about our legal system ansd holding individuals accountable for their actions? Would there be any people guilty of committing most crimes?
Our understanding of the law is that guilty can only be assigned to human agent acting feeling- but naturalism argues there is no such thing as freedom
Naturalism and artificial intelligent
AI is deep rooted in the idea of naturalism
Commonality between naturalism and AlI both focus greatly on the great and neural pathways
Personal identity is shaped by what you do
But what if you are not a agent?
What if you are nothing more than a pile of neural connections?
What if nothing is truly ‘yours’
Derek Parfit says ‘you would be no more than the existence of brain and body, and the occurrence of a series of interrelated physical and mental