Theological Glossary
Six Christian traditions define Free Will below — each in its own words, paraphrased from its official documents. These are attributed positions, not assertions of fact.
The Catholic Church teaches that freedom is a God-given power rooted in reason and will, by which the human person can deliberately shape his own life. It holds that grace does not destroy freedom but heals and elevates it, so that free cooperation with grace is real and meritorious.
Source: CCC 1730–1732; 1993 ↗
The Orthodox Church teaches that human beings retain genuine free will after the fall, and that salvation is a synergy — God's grace working together with the believer's free cooperation. It holds that God never overrides human freedom, since love compelled is not love.
Lutherans teach that in spiritual matters — conversion and salvation — the fallen human will is bound and can contribute nothing, so that conversion is entirely the Spirit's work. They hold that the will remains free in civil and outward matters, but only grace makes it willing toward God.
The Reformed tradition teaches that the fall left the human will free from coercion but enslaved to sin, so that fallen man cannot of himself turn to God. It holds that only effectual grace liberates the will, making the elect both able and willing to believe.
Source: Westminster Confession 9.1–9.4 ↗
Baptists teach that man was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice, and that by his free choice man sinned against God. They hold that God's gracious election is consistent with the free agency of man, and that each person is responsible for responding to the gospel.
Source: BFM 2000, III; V ↗
Methodists teach that God's prevenient grace restores to every person a measure of freedom to respond to the gospel — freedom the fall had forfeited. They hold that grace enables but never coerces, so that each person can accept or resist God's saving invitation.
See how the traditions compare on related topics: