Do you think you wouldn't have emotions without religion?

Question

Because I hear people say that they think morals come from religion or the even bolder ones say directly from God. So you are saying without religion you'd be completely lacking in emotions like love, empathy and compassion?

Catholicmom: these are definitely not MY thoughts. These are the words of christians I have encountered everywhere.

Answer 1

I'm an emotional, moral, virtuous kinda person, and I have no religion.

Answer 2

No, I don't think my morals come from the man made "religion." I use the Bible as my moral compass, and it is the inspired Word of God, so I guess you could say that makes me bold.
But the rest of your question makes no sense. My morals are not dictated by my emotions. I had emotions before I gave my life to Christ and I still have emotions, and I can be quite emotional at times now, as I have always been.
Actually, I think the opposite of what you are trying to say is accurate. Without God in my life I allowed my emotions to be my moral compass, living by the "what I want, what feels good to me, what I like, how I feel about things" mentality to rule my decision making process.
but now, I try hard to not allow my emotions to rule my decision making process, but rather I strive to live according to Truth, and allow that Truth to guide my decisions.
No, "non-religious" people have emotions, and that usually is their moral compass, which explains why so many people are tossed about like ships in a storm.
Now I choose something more stable, a strong Anchor in the storms of life, a foundation of Rock, not sand.

Answer 3

You have to understand what religion is first of all. As a believer you know that the scriptures are given by Divine inspiration. In the book of James, chapter 1, verse 26: If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. V.27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this, to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep ones self from being polluted by the world. When Adam and Eve were in the garden they had no religion, just God. Love, empathy, compassion, etc., are gifts from God that help up to learn and improve on Gods Will for us. To spread the Word to all living creatures in all four corners of the earth.

Answer 4

Hmmmm. Food for thought. Some emotions are hard wired some are learned. If someone were to be born and brought up in a religiously/emotionally and morally sterile environment would they still "feel" emotions or have morals? I'd love to say that yes they would but I would be guessing and hoping. Would they know right from wrong or ever be able to function in todays society? I don't think a moral society would ever allow this type of experiment in human nature.

Answer 5

The theory of the trinity suggests that God is three in one, and is actually communicating with himself. That would imply that emotions, communication, empathy, all these kinds of things, are attributes of God. Christians believe that people are made in the image of God, and so share those attributes.
But God and religion are different things - you can know God without being religious, and you can be religious without knowing God. So it's not as if you need to be religious to truly love or feel compassion. Those things are part of God, and because God made us, they're part of being human too.

Answer 6

Knowing God has nothing to do with religion.
If they did not come from the creator.
Where did they come from?
Man. No, not from man, some men show no compassion, as serial killers.
Animals. No, animals do not love.
Society. No our society has steadily gone downhill. Their losing all morals. I think a woman's body is beautiful, but is it moral to walk around topless, or have a avatar topless where younger kids might see it?
Such emotions do not come from society.
Where do they come from?

Answer 7

There's a difference between emotion and morals. Emotion is how you feel about something, morals are the sense of righteousness or guilt we have when we do something. The knowledge that we've done something that's right, or something that's wrong. Emotion is much more physical and psychological. However, our emotions about our morals can effect us similarly. But they're not the same.

Answer 8

Emotions and Morals are two different things. We are all created to have emotions...not all of us have morals. My "religious" experience and faith does not arise from my emotions. I am human and therefore my emotions are expressed while I'm worshiping, but the emotions are not the reason I believe what I believe. That came from taking a logical look at Christianity and choosing to believe.

Answer 9

No, my Athiest friends have strong emotions. My morals come from me. Just because they have a lot in common with Catholicism doesn't mean the God came down and said "shadow, these are your morals". I have my morals for my reasons and it's not because the Pope said so.

():-D
shadowgirl

Answer 10

To think the higher emotions only come from religion is false. To believe the higher emotions come from the spark of Divinity in each human being is true.

Answer 11

Emotions come from instincts and other physiological phenomena (sp?), so it definitely doesn't make sense to argue that religious morals give people emotions. I'm not really religious but I still have emotions...

What's more is that most "morals" from religions are based on biological instincts, not any hocus pocus words that supposedly came from an all-knowing being.