Do we have free will?

Are our choices genuinely ours, and are we morally responsible for them? Those are the central questions of free will, and the topic of discussion for our next Freethinkers’ Forum on Thursday, June 4, 2026. We will meet at 6:30 pm at the Keith Summey Library on Rivers Ave in North Charleston.

Philosophers have long debated free will. In classical-modern philosophy, the issue was closely tied to god’s supposed omniscience: if god already knows what you will do, in what sense could you have chosen otherwise? Free will is still commonly offered by theologians as a solution to the problem of evil—if god is all-knowing, all-powerful, and good, why does evil exist? The idea that free will somehow resolves this problem is dumb, but abandoning belief in god does not make the problem of free will disappear.

Modern science presents its own challenges to our common-sense notions of freedom and moral responsibility. Classical physics is fundamentally deterministic, which seems to leave little room for genuine choice. Some have thought that the random chance in quantum mechanics leaves room for free will, but randomness is not the same thing as control. More recently, advances in biology and neuroscience have deepened the challenge. In his 2023 book Determined: A Science of Life Without Free Will, Stanford neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky argues that our decisions are fully shaped by genetics, brain states, prior experiences, and environment—and that free will, in the ordinary sense, does not exist.

So, in a secular worldview where science is our best tool for understanding reality, where does free will stand? Are we truly free to choose? And if not, what becomes of moral responsibility, praise, blame, punishment, and justice?

Join us as we explore these questions together, share our own reflections and experiences, and consider what the debate over free will might mean for how we understand ourselves, relate to one another, and engage with the world around us.

***All participants are asked to familiarize themselves with and agree to follow our code of conduct.

About the group:
The Freethinkers' Forum is a monthly gathering facilitated by the Secular Humanists of the Lowcountry to discuss topics of interest to freethinkers, atheists, agnostics and other non-religious people. The purpose of these gatherings is to foster respectful dialogue of interesting and intellectually stimulating topics. The focus is discussion and so we will not have speakers. We may have brief presentations to introduce topics, but those will be restricted to 15 minutes or less. There may be optional readings or television or film recommendations to stimulate discussion.