--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If God created our will, then he's…" description: "\"“If God created our will, then he's responsible for every choice we make... So-- as I recall, the official philosophical answer is that free will doesn..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b07/orson-scott-card-134_causal_if-god-created-our-will-then-he-s-respon_796328.jpg" --- # If God created our will, then he's responsible for every… ![“If God created our will, then he's responsible for every choice we make... So-- as I recall, the official philosophical answer is that free will doesn't exist. Only the illusion of free will, because the causes of hour behavior are so complex that we can't trace them back. If you've got one line…” quote by Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b07/orson-scott-card-134_causal_if-god-created-our-will-then-he-s-respon_796328.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b07/orson-scott-card-134_causal_if-god-created-our-will-then-he-s-respon_796328.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b07/orson-scott-card-134_causal_if-god-created-our-will-then-he-s-respon_796328.jpg) > ““If God created our will, then he's responsible for every choice we make... So-- as I recall, the official philosophical answer is that free will doesn't exist. Only the illusion of free will, because the causes of hour behavior are so complex that we can't trace them back. If you've got one line of dominoes knocking each other down, one by one, then you can always say, look, this domino fell because that one pushed it. But when you have an infinite number of dominoes that can be traced back in an infinite number of directions, you can never find where the causal chain begins. So you think, That domino fell because it wanted to... Even if there is no such thing as free will, we have to treat each other as if there were free will in order to live together in society.”” [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that free will may be an illusion caused by complex causality, yet society must act as if it exists for cooperation. **In simple terms:** Free will might be an illusion, but we must treat it as real. Key Takeaway Act as if free will exists for social harmony. Themes philosophy determinism social contract Mood thoughtful serious reflective Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - ethical debates - legal systems - interpersonal relationships - education - policy making Key Concepts causality illusion agency Questions to Reflect On - How do we assign responsibility without true free will? - Can societal norms persist if everyone knows free will is an illusion? A Different Perspective If free will is illusory, accountability becomes problematic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Causal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causal/) [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Determinism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/determinism/) [Dominoes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dominoes/) [Free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [God Created](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-created/) [Philosophical Answer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophical-answer-2243093/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Think Domino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-domino-2454220/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) ## Related quotes > [“Free will doesn’t exist. Only the illusion of free will, because the causes of our behavior are so complex that we can’t trace them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/free-will-doesn-t-exist-only-the-illusion-of-free-will-because-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [It's not like I have this philosophical answer as to why I love rock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/it-s-not-like-i-have-this-philosophical-answer-as-to-why-i-love-rock/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [I don't think that everyone should have a philosophical answer to any given question. There are things that need to be done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandar-hemon/i-don-t-think-that-everyone-should-have-a-philosophical-answer-to-any/) [Aleksandar Hemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandar-hemon/) > [If we can hit that bull's-eye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zapp-brannigan/if-we-can-hit-that-bull-s-eye-the-rest-of-the-dominoes-will-fall-like/) [Zapp Brannigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zapp-brannigan/) > [I play dominoes all the way until I got Bible study. And then I do Bible study. I go to the game. After the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-butler/i-play-dominoes-all-the-way-until-i-got-bible-study-and-then-i-do/) [Jimmy Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-butler/) > [We are like dominoes, I fall for you, you fall for another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-like-dominoes-i-fall-for-you-you-fall-for-another/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Got them hoes falling like a hundred million dominoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-wayne/got-them-hoes-falling-like-a-hundred-million-dominoes/) [Lil Wayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-wayne/) > [Love is like dominoes I fall for you and you fall for someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-newton/love-is-like-dominoes-i-fall-for-you-and-you-fall-for-someone-else/) [Shelby Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-newton/) > [“That's the first rule of command; be consistent! 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Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-k-jones/) > [“One bad decision is like building a long line of dominoes and then sneezing and not turning your head”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-kent/one-bad-decision-is-like-building-a-long-line-of-dominoes-and-then/) [Julia Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-kent/) > [If men's minds were like dominoes, surely his would be the double blank.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-2/if-men-s-minds-were-like-dominoes-surely-his-would-be-the-double-blank/) [P. G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-2/) ## More by Orson Scott Card > [“You underestimate yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/you-underestimate-yourself/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [“Why did he hesitate? 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