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To: snarks_when_bored; don-o
"Is it reasonable to misbehave if there is not a deity?"

Sure it is. If there is no deity, everything is allowed. And if everything is allowed, there are funner things to aspire to than "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."

There's always fame, fortune, amusement, excitement, comfort, pleasure and ease.

Perhaps it will be objected that these things can bring fulfillment only in the short run. On the other hand, without faith, a short run is all you've got. Why waste it on patience and faithfulness?

There's some history here:

Acts 24:25
As Paul talked about righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and said, "That's enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you."

66 posted on 11/24/2008 7:46:51 AM PST by Mrs. Don-o ("It is our choices, far more than our abilities, that show us what we truly are. " -- J.K.Rowling)
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To: Mrs. Don-o
Sure it is. If there is no deity, everything is allowed. And if everything is allowed, there are funner things to aspire to than "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."

Likewise, if there is a deity and an afterlife, believers might convince themselves that they're doing someone a favor by torturing them to death, since after all, what's a little excruciating pain in this world as compared to the eternity of the afterlife?

81 posted on 11/24/2008 8:15:31 AM PST by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: Mrs. Don-o
There's always fame, fortune, amusement, excitement, comfort, pleasure and ease.

There's nothing wrong with any of those things, and none of them are exclusionary to "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."

Show me one that contradicts the other.

113 posted on 11/24/2008 11:52:59 AM PST by GunRunner
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