Posted on 05/27/2007 9:43:00 AM PDT by wagglebee
I received a lot emails from snippy atheists after my column, “Atheists had Better Pray to God They’re Right” ran the week of May 13, 2007. I had many God-deniers tell me, quite self-righteously I might add, that they lived by a high moral code without the aid of any “opiate” or “crutch” like Jesus or Moses, and they didn’t need some archaic holy book giving them the skinny on how they should live.
Hey, arrogant atheists, here’s an aside before I take you to task any further: that self-righteous, “I’m good enough without God” attitude is the very sin that Christ condemned the most. But I wouldn’t worry about that, since Jesus probably never existed anyway. And if He did, He wasn’t “the One” He thought He was and said He was and thus, all He said was a load of hooey. That is, according to your wizards.
Anyway, back to my point. Did I make a point yet? Please forgive me. My coffee is wearing off. Okay, now I’m tracking. . . .
In the volley of hate email hailed down upon me, one particular anti-God guy stated that he lived better than most Christians. He further patted himself on the back by saying that his Christian buddies even gave him big props for his squeaky-cleanness. Well, let me join in your hombres’ praise by saying a big “Good for you, dude. Here’s a brownie button.” I’ll be the first to admit that I’ll take a civil atheist over an irrational and violent al Qaeda op any old day.
The problem I have, however, with the atheists and their goodness and their morality claims is that all your ethical codes of conduct sound strangely similar to the principles inherent to the Judeo-Christian traditions. As a matter of fact, it seems as if you have bellied up to the Bible and are treating it like a buffet . . . passing up on the worship of the person and work of God, while taking second helpings of His moral principles, you duplicitous, little, evolved monkey, you.
One of my old seminary profs used to say that although such muddled atheists would never verbally affirm the existence of God, they would live according to some ethical standard, some moral capital they have milked from us theists.
If I were an atheist and I believed that God didn’t exist, that the Bible was a bunch of weird bunk written by religiously deluded men several thousand years ago, that Jesus was an apocalyptic, sandal-wearing, hippie forerunner of David Koresh who went around spitting out cheeky clichés who needed not to be heeded, but straight-jacketed or at least ignored—I sure as heck wouldn’t be borrowing any tidbits of His wisdom to navigate my life’s glide path.
If Moses, Elijah, Abraham, David, Jeremiah, Paul and Peter were not who they claimed to be and spoke not for Whom they claimed to speak, then these dudes were certifiably psycho and you wouldn’t find me (if I were an atheist) taking any of their moral maxims and making them into inspirational refrigerator magnets.
That’s what I appreciate about the atheist and philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900). Freddy is one of the few atheists who told his fellow atheistic buddies that they couldn’t have their cake and eat it, too. Nietzsche understood that we can either have God and meaningful morality, or we can have no God and thus, all life is meaningless and without any trace of hope . . . it officially sucks.
Nietzsche came to the conclusion that if there is no God—or God is dead, as he put it—then he’s not going to live “as if” God is alive and His moral principles mattered. Yes, brass-balled Friedrich said that the opposite of how the Bible says to live is the way we should live.
Nietzsche, unlike you postmodern Nancy atheists, was welded to his belief that God was dead and Christian morality was gonzo. He was not a half-hearted atheist parading around like most atheists do today, claiming the title while schlepping to Judeo-Christian principles.
Once again, if I did not believe in God and I believed that the 10 commandments were BS and that faith, hope and love is for “the herd”, and that I came from nothing and I’m going to nothing and there is no ultimate eternal accountability for my actions—then I am sure not going to live like I did. Why do you do so, Mr. & Mrs. Atheist?
So what’s it going to be, my obstreperous amigos? Are you going to continue to blather on about there being no God and then live like there is one and that His word and will matters? Get consistent, why don’t ‘cha? Don’t live by the Ten Commandments. Don’t live by the Golden Rule. Don’t do unto others as you would have them do unto you. That’s our stuff. That’s the Judeo-Christian way. Get your own commandments that are logically deduced from the “no God” hypothesis, write your own unholy book and form your own civilization. Then let’s see how appealing it is, how it betters the planet and how far you’ll get.
I will remember this. Thank you for the laugh. Happy Pentecost.
Atheism is the perfect venue for moral relativism.
Whereas the Biblical moral code is the there is no inherent moral code that can be derived, but rules laid down by the All Mighty.
If I may add, the Judeo-Christian theology introduced to the world, and to world history, two previously unknown, unimagined, and unimaginable concepts:
...what the heck?? How did I get that mixed up with "Judeo-Christian"?? It was one of the choice on the spell checker (don't as my why) and I guess I must have hit it by mistakes. Well, I guess that's what I get for trying to pontificate which eating a plateful of cheetos! (and they were stale, too!)
Are you delusional? I never called you immoral.
The Prisoners Dilemma basically demonstrates that it is in everyones best interest to work together and not betray each other. There is no need to call on a higher authority to decree morality. Enlightened self interest works very well. Religion tends to work against fundamental moral principles.
Confucius say, "Is there moral duty for civilization to endure?"
Cordially,
And Nietzche of course was insane.
The problem I have, however, with the atheists and their goodness and their morality claims is that all your ethical codes of conduct sound strangely similar
Well, Marx cooked up something original also.
And why exactly do you think they are brutal?
Good points!
You sure sound bothered. What specifically do you find vile? The word "sucks"?
Arguments from analogy are inductive. It is also an informal fallacy...
(That is also a collectivist argument.)
There is no need to call on a higher authority to decree morality.
Morality and all of its associated ideals are rooted entirely in the presupposition some higher power defines what is correct for human behavior.
The very idea that human beings have individual rights not subject to the whims of an earthly monarch, but subject to the laws of Yahweh, is directly from Moses.
Most of them just want to play "God."
Cultural Marxism ultimately leads to economic Marxism.
Cultural Marxism ultimately leads to economic Marxism.
Confucius also said, about 500 BC:
The Master replied: “How about ‘shu’: never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself?”
Analects XV.24, tr. David Hinton
The golden rule, it turns out, is not strictly of Christian heritage. You could look it up.
That translates to don't do unto others what you wouldn't want happen to you. It's not the Golden Rule.
“How about ‘shu’: never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself?”
Too bad our politicians don’t live by that rule.
No, it’s not literally the same, but the sentiment and reprocity are the same. Yet it arose from an entirely separate tradition from the Christian one. My point is that supernatural fundaments are not necessary to arrive at morality.
But there is a very significant differance. "Do" is the opposite of "do not".
My point is that supernatural fundaments are not necessary to arrive at morality.
I'm no expert on Confucius. Some quick checks on the web seem to show him to be a wise an decent fellow.
And I think he might disagree with you:
Confucius said: A virtuous man has three awes:
1- Awe for Heaven’s decree,
2- Awe for great men.
3- Awe for saints’ words... When worshipping God, one must feel as if He were visibly present.
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