atheist:can you answer this....?

Question

hey dears

just want to know since you don't believe in god
or heaven or hell
and like you told me before about your porpuse
in your lives....
it really made me think about it
and wonder if i could be a bad person
thin it wont matter cause im not going to heaven or to hell
any way

so why should i be a good person in my life?
what is the porpuse for that?
since im not going to heaven or to hell...

and peace all
anno

Answer 1

Yes I can answer this....

But I see that Alex Azender has already answered it, so there's no need in me repeating it.

But I do have some additional comments. The Old Testament is filled with commandments from God. Many of these commandments instruct the Israelites to go into neighboring cities and kill every living thing: men, women, children, babies... Sometimes God would tell the Israelite men that if any of the little girls were virgins, they could take them as sex slaves. But most of the time, the instruction was to kill everyone. People were slaughtered mercilessly. Blood everywhere. Children watched their parents die before getting their throats slit themselves. Babies ripped from pregnant women with the tip of a sword. THIS IS THE BOOK YOU ALLEGEDLY GET YOUR MORAL AUTHORITY FROM????

And you dare ask me how I can possibly be a good person and not believe in God?

Answer 2

I think it's absolutely awful that someone would only be moral or good because they fear punishment... That's the preconventional level of morality, and it's really very childish.

Morality is a common standard and it is strongest when there is no religion present to express hatred (of homosexuals, races, etc. Yahweh hates everyone). Morality is also clearly not derived from the bible or christianity, if morality came from the bible we would kill our disobedient children, stone to death a woman that didn't marry as a virgin, kill those who work on the Sabbath, would still be fine with slavery (selling your daughter as a sex slave is just fine by Exodus 21: 7-8), and would be still in the dark ages.

Look at the most secular/atheist countries: They all have by far the lowest rates of violence, crime, rape, murder, stds, abortion, discrimination, divorce, and other social ills. In America it's similar, even though atheists take up about 10-14% of the US population they take up only 0.209% of the prison population.

You don't need heaven or hell to be a good person, you just need to be a human being.

Answer 3

Because you live in a world full of humans that believe in payback. Good normally gets paid back with good. Nastyness gets paid back with nastyness. All of your actions affect your life in the here and now. So if you want to, sure, rip off the people around you. See how long that works.
What goes around comes around.

Now how does your heavens above, pie in the sky, reward idea match up to that.
Yup, it should be added to the drinking game, but I am on coffee at the moment and I am starting to shake from the caffeine buzz

Answer 4

~~~anno ,,, This is a Dynamic Universe which has "Laws" in which it functions. Some refer to it by Isaac Newton's observations as he realized the Science of Newtonian Physics,,, that is,,, That for every Action, there is an opposite and equal Reaction. This Cosmic Harmony is represented in the Ancient Chinese symbol of the Tai Chi, or Yin & Yang. Extend this Concept to Human Behavior and how we are Responsible or Accountable for Our Actions,,, both Positive & Negative,,, and you now have the Basic Concept of Karma. If, as human beings, we continue to create Negative Karma, we shall never be released from the Cycle of Birth and Rebirth, thus not acheiving our goal of becoming an Enlightened Being, as Jesus, Krishna and Buddha taught,,,,

Answer 5

It is your choice -- you can be a "bad" person or a "good" person.
Being "bad" usually means doing things that hurt others, are against the law, or are self-destructive. You don't need any made-up god to see how those things are bad. You wind up with no other humans who like you ('cause you treat them badly), you wind up in jail (if you break the law), or you wind up hurting yourself (which doesn't do anybody any good).
If you're kind to others, others will like you and sometimes return that kindness when you are in need. If you abide by the law, it's easier to propser socially, financially, and personally. And if you take care of yourself, you'll live this one life you have for a longer time, and have more time to enjoy it.
See -- it's just common sense, and getting along with the other humans that occupy this world. No god needed, no false promise of a wonderful heaven, no threat of eternal punishment in hell...just common sense :)

Peace.

Answer 6

Let me answer this by turning it around:

If you were to find out that in fact there was no Heaven or Hell, would you become immoral? Would you start taking what you wanted from people, killing people who got in your way, violating anyone you desired or found attractive?

If so, you're only good because you believe -- that's sycophancy at its worst.

If not, then Heaven and Hell must be insufficient reason to be good or bad.


Why am I good? Because if I do good, it is more likely people will be good to me. If I am bad, it is more likely people will be bad to me. As well, I have this instinct for empathy and altruism that humans evolved with which makes it feel good to act empathically and altruistically.

Answer 7

Well first and foremost, my purpose in life is to learn to spell and construct a grammatically correct sentence. Apparently you've discarded that along with the ability to think for yourself.
Secondly, I don't need an imaginary sky pixie to know that certain things are right and others are wrong. Only the feeble-minded need that.
Lastly, don't call us dear when you're trying to insult us... (though to be brutally honest here, you're nowhere near intelligent enough to do so...)

Answer 8

Try studying (for one example) Karl Jaspers on the role of society in forming morality, or you might consider C S Lewis on "The Tao", his approach to showing the near omnipresence of basic morals.

On the other hand, I am still working on the acquisition of a small aquatic mammal. As my Brooklyn guru insisted:
"Ya gotta have a porpoise!"

Answer 9

I have no idea what "porpuse" is.

I try to be a good person because it's the decent and civilized thing to do. Not because I want something in exchange or because I am scared. What a strange education you seem to have received dear....

Answer 10

I'm good because of the way I was raised. As an ex-christian, I too falsely believed that as an atheist I would be likely to just be an evil person. However, I know that I underestimated myself. Some people, however, are truly evil and they need the fear of eternal punishment to keep them in line. I'm an atheist, but I don't think stupid people who don't know any better would necessarily benefit more from being one.