Uploaded July 2022 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
In this Ask A Scholar Video Dr. Daniel Speak answers the following question.
"It seems like there is a tension between some Christian doctrines and libertarian freedom. If humans have libertarian freedom (in the leeway sense), isn’t it possible for humans to live a sinless life? If the answer is yes, doesn’t that lead to pelagianism? If the answer is no, why not? One might say ‘because we have a certain character that limits the range of options we have to choose from.’ But there’s a problem with this response. Either we ultimately get to choose our characters or we do not ultimately get to choose our characters. If we ultimately get to choose our characters, then it seems like we could have chosen characters such that we always had the option to refrain from sinning. But if that’s the case, then we run back into the original worry about pelagianism. On the other hand, if we do not ultimately get to choose our own characters, then how am I morally responsible for sinning due to a character that I did not get to choose?”
Dr. Speak is a professor of philosophy at Loyola Marymount University. For more on Dr. Speak check out the link below.
philpeople.org/profiles/daniel-speak
Please consider becoming a patron. Go to patreon.com/theanalyticchristian
For merch and more, go to theanalyticchristian.com
In this Ask A Scholar Video Dr. Daniel Speak answers the following question.
"It seems like there is a tension between some Christian doctrines and libertarian freedom. If humans have libertarian freedom (in the leeway sense), isn’t it possible for humans to live a sinless life? If the answer is yes, doesn’t that lead to pelagianism? If the answer is no, why not? One might say ‘because we have a certain character that limits the range of options we have to choose from.’ But there’s a problem with this response. Either we ultimately get to choose our characters or we do not ultimately get to choose our characters. If we ultimately get to choose our characters, then it seems like we could have chosen characters such that we always had the option to refrain from sinning. But if that’s the case, then we run back into the original worry about pelagianism. On the other hand, if we do not ultimately get to choose our own characters, then how am I morally responsible for sinning due to a character that I did not get to choose?”
Dr. Speak is a professor of philosophy at Loyola Marymount University. For more on Dr. Speak check out the link below.
philpeople.org/profiles/daniel-speak
Please consider becoming a patron. Go to patreon.com/theanalyticchristian
For merch and more, go to theanalyticchristian.com
