This post was submitted by DocMcC1 of Ocean Springs, MS. In the strictest sense, I am not an atheist. I am an agnostic, but I'm sure many of you would acknowledge that there is little practical difference between the two. In either case, you have taken the reigns of your mind from tradition and faith and started your own search for truth, if such a simplification can be permitted. I am happy that even in this land steeped in that “old timey religion”, there are people who like to analyze existence and take it at face value. But that doesn't mean we can't have similar values to our faith-driven counterparts.
One common statement I hear concerning my beliefs, or lack thereof, I should say, is something similar to the following: If you have no belief in God, then how can you have a solid system of ethics and morality? Of course, the question seems almost silly when reading, but I'm sure most of you have come across some variation of it. People of faith love to pair morality with religion, and make them inseparable. But giving it some thought, how does one answer this question, especially to someone asking it from a religious point of view?
Obviously, the asker means to imply that one cannot have morals unless they were dictated to them by some religion. Put another way, if no one was there to punish you for “wrong-doing”, then what's to stop you from going on a murderous rampage, or robbing a bank, or committing any number of other immoralities? Notwithstanding the legal deterrent to this behavior, the faithful NEED to have some reason to be “good”. You can't just quote them the golden rule, as a lot of them will say that it is religious in nature. In a way, I suppose they are right. So what do we tell them? What advantage is there in morality to we who have no expectations of postmortem tortures?
It's actually quite simple. When we refrain from killing each other, stealing, etc., we are acting in a way that is conducive to a civilized society. We are contributing to our own progress as a species. It is within our best interests. Of course, this doesn't satisfy some of the faithful as well as it should.
I'd be interested to hear what other freethinkers have said in response to this question.
-DougMcC1
Ocean Springs, MS
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