Predestination: meaning, definitions and examples

Etymology

• The word comes from the Latin 'praedestinare', meaning 'to determine beforehand'.
• It has been used in theological discussions since at least the early Middle Ages.
• The term is often linked to religious writings, especially in Christianity.

Philosophy

• Philosophers have debated the concept for centuries, discussing how free will interacts with foreordained plans.
• Two main views exist: compatibilism, which says free will and determinism can coexist, and incompatibilism, which argues they cannot.
• Notable thinkers like Augustine and John Calvin emphasized predestination in their theological frameworks.

Religion

• In Christianity, especially in Calvinism, predestination refers to God determining who will be saved.
• In Islam, the concept of Qadar relates to the belief in divine preordaining of all events.
• Various interpretations exist across different religions, including Hinduism and Buddhism, regarding karma and fate.

Literature

• The theme appears in works like Dante's 'Divine Comedy', where souls are preassigned their afterlife fate.
• In Shakespeare's plays, characters often grapple with fate versus free will, reflecting the tension of predestined outcomes.
• Modern novels, such as 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho, explore the idea of destiny in a narrative form.

Science

• Some scientists argue that the universe operates in a deterministic way where the future is predictable given initial conditions.
• Quantum mechanics introduces uncertainty, challenging the strict interpretations of determinism in classical physics.
• The debate over genetic determinism suggests that our DNA could predestine certain traits and behaviors.

Positioned at #22,281, this word is part of extensive vocabulary. It's relatively rare in general usage but may be important in specific fields or formal writing.

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• 22279 retiree
• 22280 reassignment
• 22281 predestination
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