ings to man, how can man be held accountable?” To which Calvin argues that although “God’s will is posited as the cause of hardening … man … at the same time himself acts!” (Calvin 231).This brings us to the question of man’s “free”, or as Calvin would call it, “unfree” will. Many philosophers and theologians throughout history have tried to explain the connection between “original sin” and “free will”. Almost all men would like to believe that they have free will and can choose to make any decision they want. That they can either choose to do what is right or what is wrong and as Calvin would say, this is what their “carnal sense” tells them. However, the Bible tells us that because of Adam we were given over to a sinful nature and are sinful by nature. Here Calvin argues that Adam was given free will, however, since he misused it all have lost it. Calvin addresses this argument and tells us his belief by saying:They, as professed disciples of Christ, are obviously playing the fool when, by compromising between the opinions of the philosophers and heavenly doctrine, so that these touch neither heaven nor earth, in man – who is lost and sunk down into spiritual destruction – they still seek after free choice … man was far different at the first creation from his whole posterity, who, deriving their origin from him in his corrupted state, have contracted from him a hereditary taint (Calvin 196). Likewise, man, when he was created, received great powers of free will, but lost them by sinning (Calvin 265).Calvin argues that because of Adam’s choice all men after him have received this “hereditary taint” which has caused them to be “shorn or supernatural gifts” (Calvin 260). Also because of this taint and the resulting lose of their gifts, man’s will is to sin. Calvin believe...
