dig deeper. it's not discipline in the middle of nothing. It was fear of G-d. It was the foundation. And on that, they built discipline, honesty, family values, etc, etc.
Nowadays, people got a bit too arrogant; they think if something is not "scientifically" provable, it's BS. So, naturally, if foundation eroded, you can only expect the building to collapse sooner or later. Trying to argue with people who have different foundation or no foundation at all is hopeless.
I would say that it was natural law, which God established.
The ancient Romans build an extremely disciplined and effective society with a high standard of personal integrity.
The fear of the God of Abraham is a powerful incentive to building a disciplined community, but so is a unsentimental acceptance of the reality He created.
The Romans had the latter.
As a scientist, I can tell you that people who are the LEAST scientifically educated, are the most vehement proponents of this doctrine.
By contrast, there are a lot of Christians in the ranks of of science.