Choices
Talk
1: Free Will
Objectives:
- Discuss the nature
and purpose of human freedom.
- Identify how our
sense of identity affects the choices we make.
Activity:
Opening Prayer
Since there will
likely be a significant break between the last talk and this one, begin the
day with time for prayer. Begin the session itself with an opening prayer (O
Heavenly King).
Activity:
1st Song
The first song may
be an "Anti-Talk" or "Looking-for-the-Talk" song in order
to set up the issues. Take about five minutes to discuss what the song is saying
about freedom.
Activity:
Freedom Talk
This discussion is
led by the retreat master. There are four main points that need to be discussed
by asking questions of the group and then providing examples. This follows the
same format as the "Group Leader Instructions":
- Who are you? Who
am I? How do you answer that question? Ask for examples. Give an example of
your own.
- How does that
affect how you make your choices?
- How does your
idea of who you are help determine what you would or would not do? Ask for
examples. If you believe yourself to be of a certain type of person (Athlete,
Scholar, Socialite, Outcast) you may not believe yourself capable of some
things but capable of doing others.
Point #1:
I MAKE CHOICES BASED ON WHO I BELIEVE I AM.
- Next, How am I
affected by the choices I have made? Go back to the "choices chain"
to see how past decisions may have changed your life for better or worse.
- How do my choices
affect my life in ways that are not immediately apparent? Give an example
of how a choice that seemed insignificant at first turned out to be very important.
Point #2:
I AM AFFECTED BY THE CHOICES I MAKE
- Again, who are
we? But now ask, where did we all come from? How is it that we are alive?
Consider the possible answers.
- What makes us
human beings human?
- What are the characteristics
of the human being from a Christian perspective?
Point #3:
I AM A CREATION OF GOD, CREATED IN HIS IMAGE, AND ENDOWED WITH FREE WILL.
- Why do we have
free will?
- Why would God
create me to be free, knowing that I might choose to do wrong?
- What am I supposed
to do with my freedom?
Point #4:
I WAS CREATED BY A GOD WHO LOVES ME SO MUCH THAT HE GAVE ME THE ABILITY TO LOVE
HIM BECAUSE I WANT TO, NOT BECAUSE I HAVE TO.
- Some people don’t
believe we have free will and that everything is up to fate. How do they make
choices in their life? Explain. Play Song, then discuss further.
Activity:
End Song
- "Free Will"
by Rush is strongly recommended, since it tackles these questions head on,
though without necessarily providing any answers.
Activity:
Group Talk on Free Will
After discussing
these basic ideas, participants should go off in their groups to apply these
to their lives. Follow the same procedure as with the Expectations talk.
Many if not most
people take their free will for granted until they are put into a position where
they are unable to do what they want. Why? Discuss briefly.
Each group member
should answer the questions below, taking time to record them in their journals
as well as discussing them aloud. For each example also ask them why they chose
that event to discuss and what the outcome was.
- Give an example
of something you didn’t want to do that you had to.
- Give an Example
of something you were asked to do that you wanted to do.
- Have I ever chosen
not to make a choice? What were the consequences?
After discussing
each person's past experiences, reflect as a group on the following question:
- How do you think
we should use our free will?
Elect a spokesperson
for this talk and return to the group.
Conclusion
After each group
has reported in, ask the main group this further question:
- With this is mind,
what does it mean to not be free?
Compare a typical
"secular" response to this question to a Christian response:
- Secular: To be
without freedom means to be restricted, limited, without rights of voting,
free speech, pursuit of happiness, and even slavery. Freedom is understood
primarily as "freedom from" those things which stop you from doing
what you want. To follow your own will is the ultimate expression of freedom.
- Christian: To
be without freedom is to be without God, the source of freedom, which happens
when we are enslaved to sin, bound by death, and unable to love or be loved.
Freedom is primarily understood as "freedom for" love, life, and
the pursuit of salvation and God. To be able to live a life free from sin
following God's will is the ultimate expression of freedom. See Galatians
5, esp v. 13
For Further Exploration:
The Whole Human Person
This is an
additional discussion to be led by the retreat master or clergy.
- Brainstorm with
participants all the characteristics of human beings.
- How do different
perspectives answer this question?
- What does the
Bible say about the human being in addition to what was mentioned above (created
in the image and likeness of God, endowed with free will)?
The Church and the
Bible show us that the human being is made of three interconnected aspects:
Body, Soul, and Spirit.
- The Body is our
physical self and experiences the world through the senses.
- The Soul is contains
much of the non-physical aspects of our life: our thoughts, our feelings,
our imagination, our desires, and our free will.
- The Spirit reflects
the highest spiritual aspects of our self, the image of God who is Spirit,
and by which our souls and bodies are lifted up to God in worship, conscience,
and longing.
Though we seemingly
divide the human person into three, all these layers are intimately connected
and united.
- Without the soul,
the body is dead and lifeless. Without the spirit, the soul and body is less
than an animal. Without soul and body, the human spirit is unable to fulfill
its high calling as "high priest" of God's creation.
- Our whole self--
Body, Soul, and Spirit-- is joined in our life experiences and is affected
by the choices we make. Healthy choices maintain the integrity of the self
and keep the self properly directed toward God.
- All three "participate"
in God and are renewed by Him. The purpose of pursuing a Christian spiritual
life is to experience that renewal.
Our choices tend
toward two types of life: the life of the Flesh and the life of the Spirit.
- The life of the
Spirit leads the self to give priority to God, where the body supports the
soul and the soul supports and follows the direction of the Spirit towards
God. The fruits of the Spirit are "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." (Gal. 5:22-3)
- The life of the
Flesh leads the self away from God by giving priority to temporary and fleeting
things such as the pleasure of the senses and the vain imaginings of the soul.
In one way or another, the proper order of things is reversed. It is important
to note that the body is not the cause of this but in fact a victim, since
it is out of the heart and mind that such choices proceed.
As a way to make
this concrete, have participants consider some of the difficult choices they
have made in life. How did these choices relate to the self? Did they give priority
to God and the Spirit or did they seek after the flesh? Consider some of the
virtues and the commandments taught in the Church. How do these reflect the
life of the Spirit?
