There has always been an undercurrent of belief I think that athiests/agnostics are not as moral as those who are believers in God. Now, I think most would agree there are some Christians who live very immoral lives and some athiests who are very moral souls. But do you think we can generalize and say that those who claim to believe in a Higher Power(God) have higher morals than those who do not believe we are held accountable to to an Almighty God? Just a thought.

Morals are basically what a person believes is right and wrong and a standard of conduct or behavior to demonstrate that.

 

There is such a disagreement in what is right and wrong. Different religions have standards of behavior and what is right or wrong that is usually tied to some type of consequence if wrong. Atheists have a moral compass, also, it just isn't guided by a religion.

 

Then there are nation's laws that define right and wrong, also. When people begin to mix religion with nation's laws, then the conflict and confusion and hatred lives.

 

Bottom line for me is that every person has value and should be treated with dignity and respect. Whether they are religious or not doesn't matter. If they break the nation's laws, consequences should be clear and they should be held accountable. There has to be certain amount of civility to have order and security.

 

Everyone is guided by some set of principles, but they are sometimes extremely different and guided by an individual's beliefs through a variety of means.

 

If you are talking Chritianity and does it trump national laws. In the US, the Constitution says no. However, there are individuals that live and think differently and want it to be different.

 

Morality, by and large, is individual.

I think there is no way to accurately generalize about the two groups (Christians vs Atheists). There are exceptions to almost every assertion and this case is no different.

 

If morality is an individual thing, could I not go out and hurt others and then justify it by saying "In my opinion there is nothing wrong with physically harming others." ?

I think I have a problem with that idea. It sounds like you're saying that there is no such thing as an absolute truth? Am I misunderstanding?

I think there is no way to accurately generalize about the two groups (Christians vs Atheists). There are exceptions to almost every assertion and this case is no different.

 

If morality is an individual thing, could I not go out and hurt others and then justify it by saying "In my opinion there is nothing wrong with physically harming others." ?

 

Unfortunately, there will be some that will think that way and think nothing is wrong.

Nope, just headed for hell.

Nope, just headed for hell.

 

 

What is hell? No one could really say much about it in the other thread. More than 2 to 1 who voted in the poll said they believed in such a place but... (once again), just as with God, couldn't really put into words what they think it is or where it's at.

What is hell? No one could really say much about it in the other thread. More than 2 to 1 who voted in the poll said they believed in such a place but... (once again), just as with God, couldn't really put into words what they think it is or where it's at.

I suppose you will get several versions. Whatever it is, Jesus has the keys to it's gates, or so it reads. Now you can chew on that one and dissect it with your science and literal vs. parable or weakminded, up to you.

And for the record, one of the most morally upright men I know is agnostic.

Some of the worst wars and atrocities in history have been, and are still being, committed in the name of religion. All religions have a sad record of this, and Christianity is as guilty as the rest. I will say, though, that Christians have gotten much better since the days of the Salem witch hunt murders and the European Inquisitions. Others not so much.

 

I think a good person is going to be good regardless if they have religion or not. Bad people will do bad things if that's their intent, and some do it in the name of religion and actually feel justified in their actions. The Middle East is full of this type of examples right now. But history proves it's always been a problem with all religions.

Very philosophical question. Here is what I know. I have known "non-saved" people who were the salt of the earth, they just didn't know Jesus. I have known purported "Christians" who just weren't very good people and if someone made me say it, I would have to say they weren't really Christian in their heart.

 

Now, with all that said, in my mind TRUE morality comes from God ad you must know God to have it. As InitToWinit said above, if it's an individual thing, then it can change at the whim of that individual, there is nothing to answer to but themselves. Coming from God, it's constant and never changing and He is the one you have to answer to, He's the final authority.

Edited April 29, 201511 yr by BigVMan23

What is hell? No one could really say much about it in the other thread. More than 2 to 1 who voted in the poll said they believed in such a place but... (once again), just as with God, couldn't really put into words what they think it is or where it's at.

 

Maybe you accidentally skipped over my posts in that thread, so I'll answer again.

 

Hell is a real spiritual place. After we die, our bodies are buried but our souls move on to another place. I believe that Hell is the absence of God, the absence of happiness.

 

The actual structure is not exactly known, but I believe it is different for every person. Whatever someone dislikes, that can be part of their Hell.

 

Additionally, please try to think of the definition of Hell as this: "I am my own." Hell is what we want for ourselves, Heaven is what God wants for us. It sounds a bit conflicting, but if you practiced your favorite activity for eternity I'd bet you'd come to get tired of it eventually. Christians believe that God knows better than we do about what we want, since he is omnipresent and created everything that is, has, and will exist.