He is spot on. This is why our country was founded on religious morals, but allowed people to have the freedom not to be, unlike the middle ages.
The idea is that believing something good, having something that everyone can agree is good, helps guide our hands and our feet to making good happen.
It's why the people who loudly proclaim themselves as Atheist (capitalized for emphasis, as this has become a new deity to them) are generally directly in opposition of the values our country was founded on.
Then those Atheists try to point at priests and whatnot who end up in the positions and use that position to commit evil as a reason for why religions are all evil.
They're not. Any religion that can preach peace in the face of opposition, violence, false prophets, cannot be evil.
Even if you do not believe personally -- or even if you find yourself more agnostic and feel like you should respect it in spite of a lack of the proof you're looking for -- if you can at least rationalize and understand that the messaging is good, the morals are worth listening to, you can use that to form a solid moral foundation and accomplish great things.
Rather than directly opposing the flow of the river until it overflows, you can walk alongside it until you reach your destination.
Even if you do not believe personally -- or even if you find yourself more agnostic and feel like you should respect it in spite of a lack of the proof you're looking for -- if you can at least rationalize and understand that the messaging is good, the morals are worth listening to, you can use that to form a solid moral foundation and accomplish great things
Religion is not a necessity for one to have morals. It absolutely has a big influence on how a religious person defines their own moral code, but non-religious people aren't any more or less likely to have morals than anyone else.
It's why the people who loudly proclaim themselves as Atheist (capitalized for emphasis, as this has become a new deity to them) are generally directly in opposition of the values our country was founded on.
I frequently see people say that the US was founded on religious principles, specifically Christianity. But whenever I ask them what those principles are, and how they are exclusive to religion, I never get an answer.
Could you tell me what you think those religious principles are, please? I truly would like to have a civilized conversation about this topic without people getting upset. I'm not saying you're wrong, necessarily. Just that I don't see the topic the way that you do, and I'm trying to understand your view better.
The principles are from Jesus: 1. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul; 2. Love your neighbor as yourself. Without responsibility to (and love for) a greater power, you will have no reason to do #2 when that gets tough.
I apologize for the late reply. I somehow missed the responses to my post from last week.
So where exactly do these principles show up in the founding of the country? It seems like you're saying that because many, or even most, of the people from that time believed in God and Jesus, that it automatically means that our country was founded on it.
Using that logic, our country was also founded on racism and male chauvinism, due to the beliefs of the majority of the people at that time and how minorities (especially black people) and women were treated.
Without responsibility to (and love for) a greater power, you will have no reason to do #2 when that gets tough.
Many people find they have no problem loving and helping their neighbor without having to believe in God. The concept of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" is one that transcends religious belief.
He is spot on. This is why our country was founded on religious morals, but allowed people to have the freedom not to be, unlike the middle ages.
The idea is that believing something good, having something that everyone can agree is good, helps guide our hands and our feet to making good happen.
It's why the people who loudly proclaim themselves as Atheist (capitalized for emphasis, as this has become a new deity to them) are generally directly in opposition of the values our country was founded on.
Then those Atheists try to point at priests and whatnot who end up in the positions and use that position to commit evil as a reason for why religions are all evil.
They're not. Any religion that can preach peace in the face of opposition, violence, false prophets, cannot be evil.
Even if you do not believe personally -- or even if you find yourself more agnostic and feel like you should respect it in spite of a lack of the proof you're looking for -- if you can at least rationalize and understand that the messaging is good, the morals are worth listening to, you can use that to form a solid moral foundation and accomplish great things.
Rather than directly opposing the flow of the river until it overflows, you can walk alongside it until you reach your destination.
Religion is not a necessity for one to have morals. It absolutely has a big influence on how a religious person defines their own moral code, but non-religious people aren't any more or less likely to have morals than anyone else.
I frequently see people say that the US was founded on religious principles, specifically Christianity. But whenever I ask them what those principles are, and how they are exclusive to religion, I never get an answer.
Could you tell me what you think those religious principles are, please? I truly would like to have a civilized conversation about this topic without people getting upset. I'm not saying you're wrong, necessarily. Just that I don't see the topic the way that you do, and I'm trying to understand your view better.
The principles are from Jesus: 1. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul; 2. Love your neighbor as yourself. Without responsibility to (and love for) a greater power, you will have no reason to do #2 when that gets tough.
I apologize for the late reply. I somehow missed the responses to my post from last week.
So where exactly do these principles show up in the founding of the country? It seems like you're saying that because many, or even most, of the people from that time believed in God and Jesus, that it automatically means that our country was founded on it.
Using that logic, our country was also founded on racism and male chauvinism, due to the beliefs of the majority of the people at that time and how minorities (especially black people) and women were treated.
Many people find they have no problem loving and helping their neighbor without having to believe in God. The concept of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" is one that transcends religious belief.