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Originally Posted by debdodd  Do you guys believe that if there wasn't any religion to guide us that we would be a lawless society? That people only do what is "right" because of a fear of going to hell?
I'd love to believe that people could care about each other without having a god demand that we do so .... I'm sure that this total delusional thinking.  |
Debdodd, I used to use that argument against the unbelief of my non-Xtn friends. In fact, when they pointed out atheistic humanists who nonetheless served humanity selflisly, I'd feel quite clever in pointing out to them that, yes, they were serving humanity, but for the wrong reasons. They should serve humanity because God calls on us to to that, since man is made in His image. That for their humanitarianism to "count" in God's eyes it had to be done for HIM, not primarily for humanity. Otherwise, it constituted a "dead work". In fact, it was a form of IDOLATRY...serving the creature instead of the Creator.
This rationale mortifies me now. But it seemed so clever then. The idea that no one can be good without it being motivated by a desire to please God...and a fear of his displeasure...is absurd. If God were removed from the equation (as he is for me now), would you go out and rape, rob, lie, cheat, murder, etc? None of the people I know would. If it's only from fear of punishment that we "walk the line", then I'd say we're not moral people at all. We're self-serving egotists who serve our own interests, even when that takes the form of "morality."
'Nuf said. Poincicco