843. Has man freedom of action?

"Since he has freedom of thought, he has freedom of action. Without free-will man would be a machine."

844. Does man possess free-will from his birth?

"He possesses free-will from the moment when he possesses the will to act. In the earliest portion of a lifetime free-will is almost null; it is developed and changes its object with the development of the faculties. The child, having thoughts in harmony with the wants of his age, applies his free-will to the things which belong to that age."

845. Are not the instinctive predispositions that a man brings with him at birth an obstacle to the exercise of his free-will?

"A man's instinctive predispositions are those which belonged to his spirit before his incarnation. If he is but little advanced, they may incite him to wrong-doing, in which he will be seconded by spirits who sympathise with that wrong-doing; but no incitement is irresistible when there is a determination to resist. Remember that to will is to be able." (361.)

846. Has not our organism an influence on the acts of our life, and if so, does not this

influence constitute an infringement of our free-will?

"Spirits are certainly influenced by matter, which may hamper them in their manifestations. This is why, in worlds in which the body is less gross than upon the earth, the faculties act more freely; but the instrument does not give the faculty. In considering this question, you must also distinguish between moral faculties and intellectual faculties. If a man has the instinct of murder, it is assuredly his spirit that possesses this instinct, and not his organs. He who annihilates his thought, in order to occupy himself only with matter, becomes like the brute, and still worse, for he no longer endeavours to preserve himself from evil, and it is this which constitutes his culpability, because he does so of his own free-will." (See No.367 et seq., Influence of Organism.)

847. Does aberration of the mental faculties deprive man of free-will?

"He whose intelligence is deranged by any cause whatever is no longer master of his

thoughts, and thenceforth is no longer free. Mental aberration is often a punishment for the spirit who, in another existence, has been vain or haughty, or has made a bad use of his faculties. He may be re-born in the body of an idiot, as the despot may be re-born in the body of a slave, and the hard-hearted possessor of riches, in that of a beggar; but the spirit suffers from this constraint, of which he is fully conscious; and it is in this constraint that you see the action of matter." (371 et seq.)

848. Is the aberration of the mental faculties produced by drunkenness an excuse for the crimes committed in that state?

"No; for the drunkard has voluntarily deprived himself of his reason in order to satisfy his brutish passions. He thus commits, not one crime, but two."

849. What is the dominant faculty of man in the savage state? Is it instinct or free-will?

"Instinct; which, however, does not prevent his acting with entire freedom in certain things; but, like the child, he uses his freedom for the satisfaction of his needs, and obtains its development only through the development of his intelligence. Consequently, you, who are more enlightened than the savage, are more blamable than a savage if you do wrong."

850. Does not social position sometimes place obstacles in the way of free action?

"Society has, undoubtedly, its exigencies. God is just, and takes everything into account; but He will hold you responsible for any lack of effort on your part to surmount such obstacles."