Thanks for posting R3NNiS.
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Proposition 1: Humans are neurobiological beings whose mind (also soul, religious experience) can, in theory, be exhaustively explained by neurochemistry and ultimately by physics.
This proposition is called eliminative materialism (or reductive physicalism). In essence, this position claims that all the causal forces in human thought and behavior can be reduced to the outcome of the operation of the laws of physics. This view is characteristic of the view of many (but certainly not all) scientists and philosophers. It is problematic in that all rationality, meaning, and ethics disappear (i.e., become incoherent) when everything about the future is physically determined at the atomic or subatomic levels. Of course, this extreme view of physicalism is unacceptable to Christians.
Neuroscientist and Christian writer Donald MacKay has criticized this propositionas "nothing buttery", that is, human nature is reduced to be “nothing but” the operation of subatomic forces. MacKay writes:
According to this view, only where physical explanation was impossible could any other account be taken seriously in its own right. Otherwise, the whole thing could be explained away as ‘nothing but’ the mindless motion of molecules.”
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His main counter to this theory seems to be simply the following statement:
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But if humans are nothing-but biology, where is human value and dignity to be found? Are we biological automata or free moral agents?
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I really feel like this guy is cloud gazing or something to that effect.
by that I'm referring to: "where is human value and dignity to be found?"
This term is him applying his perspective as a "free agent" to a study of reality (i.e. seeing a rabbit or a dragon in the clouds because he's seen them elsewhere in life).
All observations by scientific instruments and neuroscientists who wield them point to us as biological automata. The concept of "free moral agent" is one that arises as an applied construct within the behavior of the system that is our population.
It's my opinion that this is the nature of man and what the story of the garden of eden describes. The defining moment of humanity is when a concept of free will comes into play. This is self awareness and the acknowledgment of pairs of opposites such as good and evil.
The answer is that we are automata and one of the crucial aspects of our behavior is a veil called the concept of free will.
You can not transcend the laws of physics that govern the universe. If you could, we could not exist. Those laws allow us to exist in the first place. You can not overcome gravity. You can not live without food/water. You need air to breathe. Every single one of these are examples of large scale electro/chemical facts that apply on every level of nature.
We know for a fact that your actions are controlled by the behavior of neurons in your body. The behavior of these neurons is dictated by the laws of nature.
Determinism is the only logical solution. Free will just can't exist as anything other than an applied social concept. The science of emergent properties of complex systems addresses this well.
The question remains though.. What am I? Making the assumption of the soul is not necessarily false, but it's a poor way to start an investigation (preconceived notions).