Universal Ramblings

Short answer: I think so.

Longer answer:

If God can see and understand the cause and effect of everything, then he could use his knowledge to manipulate outcomes and events to serve the greater good. If you were playing a game, and knew all the rules, you could totally manipulate a beginner into doing exactly what you wanted. If you're a chess master, and you understand your opponent's mind, you can anticipate his moves, and plan yours to manipulate what he does next. God could do the same thing, but on a larger scale.

If God's playing a causality game with all of humanity, and only he knows the rules, then that means that we don't really know what we're doing. And when it comes to the future, that is mostly true. We don't know exactly how things will play out, because there are too many variables to consider. But God has that covered.

Since God is aware of the full ramifications of every action, and we are not, does that mean that when (and if) he steers things one was or another, our free will is cancelled out?

I think that even in ignorance, you can still have free will. Of course, the more you know, the more powerful and capable you are, and the more effective using that free will becomes. However, even when we don't know the full story, I believe we can still act on our own behalf.

However, since free will is more useful when you're in the know, it wouldn't hurt to study up on some chess!

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