Hi. My name is Sean and I am an R&S Junkie and Addict. This is my first question of the day, (see details)?

Question

My question is, when religious people tell me I'm an atheist so why don't I do what I want I'm not accountable why don't I go kill people, I ask three questions, one - how come I haven't killed anyone even thou I am an atheist, two, why do some religious people kill others, and three, if I proved to you there was no God, (there are these people called atheists who stopped believing cause someone proved it to them, or they proved it to themselves), would these people then go around killing people - as they said when they were religious if there was no God why not go killing people.

Or would they act like decent responsible atheists? Like the majority of us atheists act, morally and decently - not killing.

You can nit-pick and say will lieing and all that, but religious people do that too so there isn't much difference there.

Specifically talking about violent crimes.

Please don't give me that I need a savior stuff I don't believe in God so can I get a real answer?

Answer 1

It rarely happens that anyone kills or does not kill because of God. God gave us His Moral Law. He wrote it to our souls.So we have that law in built no matter if we believe in Him or not believe in Him. He had to do that because He gave us free will and He wanted to protect us. I understand that you do not want to give God the credit for your understanding the moral law, but He really is behind it. You are free to make a choice, good and bad..and you know what is right and what is wrong, because God wrote His law to your soul.

It is just that without God's standard we fail to have a real inventory on us about what is good and what is bad by God's standard. Without God's standard of what is good, we are left with human opinions about that.

Remember, all good people do not go to heaven, but all forgiven people go to heaven. : )

Answer 2

There's a big difference between being an atheist and being a nihilist. If you are a nihilist, then there is no *moral* reason why you shouldn't go around pillaging and murdering (though there are probably prudential reasons for not doing so). Most atheists, however, are not nihilists. They have moral convictions that are not divinely prescribed, but are arrived at through reason (incidentally, it is a longstanding Christian belief that it is possible for 'virtuous heathens' to derive moral truths from reason and not just from Scripture - St Thomas Aquinas demonstrated this 800 years ago).

The argument that if you don't believe in God you can't have any serious ground for moral claims is fatuous and untrue. Moreover, the question can be turned around on Christians who believe moral truth is theocentric: If God commanded you to rape, murder, and steal, would it be morally right to do so?

Answer 3

Well I have experiance of being an atheist and a member of 3 different faith groups.
I was least violent minded as a Buddhist.
Then as an atheist, though I studied martial arts.
As a Christian I was more charitable, but I prayed to God: "Destroy this sinful world".
As a Muslim I became anti Western and thought of organisations and institutions in the West, of my own counrty, from the police force to the tax system as the enimies of Islam and therefore my opponents too. I would have liked to destroy them all.
Now I am an atheist again, and no longer practice martial arts, so that filter my mind used - "the other is a target" - no longer exists. I do however retain some of the meditative lessons which I learned as a Buddhist, and am a peaceful kind of guy. I am empowered also by psychological "councelling" which teaches us a similar lesson, we are all positive and loving inside, and if we send out good vibes we will get them back.

Why do I not commit violent crimes? Well it's against my personal morality, which is humanist broadly, and has influences from Plato, Aristotle, Kant and J Bentham and J S Mill, and eslewhere too as you will be able to tell. I believe in spreading knowledge, especially scientific knowledge, and the empowerment of people thereby. To kill another would therfore be counterproductive. I would become a burden on the state, a state which educates me freely in all kinds of discipline, and enriches my life, and the lives of others thereby. Also I would not like to spend so many years in jail.

For those who do not know, the basic tenets of (Secular)Humanism are:

"Need to test beliefs - A conviction that dogmas, ideologies and traditions, whether religious, political or social, must be weighed and tested by each individual and not simply accepted on faith.
Reason, evidence, scientific method - Commitment to the use of critical reason, factual evidence, and scientific methods of inquiry, rather than faith and mysticism, in seeking solutions to human problems and answers to important human questions.
Fulfillment, growth, creativity - A primary concern with fulfillment, growth, and creativity for both the individual and humankind in general.
Search for truth - A constant search for objective truth, with the understanding that new knowledge and experience constantly alter our imperfect perception of it.
This life - A concern for this life and a commitment to making it meaningful through better understanding of ourselves, our history, our intellectual and artistic achievements, and the outlooks of those who differ from us.
Ethics - A search for viable individual, social and political principles of ethical conduct, judging them on their ability to enhance human well-being and individual responsibility.
Building a better world - A conviction that with reason, an open exchange of ideas, good will, and tolerance, progress can be made in building a better world for ourselves and our children. " Source Wikipedia.

Add to thet the importance of developing empathy for other, and the enabling and inclusion of those with disabilities, and you have an idea of a good part of my general world and ethical view. Perhaps from thence you will also see why I am not motivated to commit violent crimes, at all. Even though I am an "Evil Atheist" a "Sinner" an "Enemy of God", or a "Person of Narrow Scope". Now if (some) of the religious people out there, who see us with scriptural and theological eyes, would listen and learn and focus on the facts, the reality instead, they might not wonder how we can live in peace with other women and men.

Answer 4

You're so wordy that I don't quite know what you Q is.
First, if you have been told that you're not accountable -- that is not true.

Secondly, why should anyone go around being evil, wicked just because they don't believe in God. It is a sad thing to say, but many unbelievers are much nicer that some believers.

Still, being nice is not what saves, being righteous and exercising faith in Christ and his God, Jehovah, is what saves.

The only reason I am including two scriptures is so that you can see for yourself if what you were told is scripturally true.

Keep being a nice person, and enjoy your remaining time. Don't worry about death. The Bible says there is no suffering after death.

If you want info about what or what not the Bible says, email me.

Answer 5

That's pretty stupid. I'm a Deist, but it's not my belief in a Deity, nor a religious book that keeps me from killing people or stealing, for example. Atheists like yourself don't kill people because they know it's wrong and leads to suffering of others, and it gives you a big burden of guilt. Besides it's a crime and is punished by law. It's not the religion that gives morals, it's the brain we have up there, if it was messed up, then our morals will be somewhat distorted.

Answer 6

Under the Old Covenant the law and judgment applies in the earthly context. The children of Israel at times were used by God to execute judgment on His behalf. Even so the execution of judgment was done on God's direction. Religious people going the way of the Old Testament think they have a right to execute judgment for God without His direction which is wrong.
The New Covenant brings in grace and truth. God is now only interested in redeeming and restoring sinners who believe in Jesus Christ. The execution of God's judgment for the sins of man is now deferred to after the second coming of Jesus and then all will come before the judgment seat of Christ to be dealt with accordingly. God now will not not use people to execute His judgment on other people on earth and those who claim they can do this are wrong. The enemies of Christians now are not flesh and blood but the wicked forces and powers in the heavenly places. Christians are called now to wage spiritual and not natural warfare. Christains are not called to be religious but to have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Christians are not lincensed to kill but to save!

Answer 7

Makes me wonder - is it just the thought of Hell that keeps these people from going on a murder spree? It seems like any love they have for people outside of their little circle isn't what they claim it is, if they think these things. Belief in God is the only thing that gets them to care about other people? Do they have the thought in the back of their heads, while talking with "outsiders", that they would really like to kill that person, but alas, belief in God forces them to Not do it????

Answer 8

You are one of God's chosen.

Not every person that comes into the world, is born of God.
but some are, and they are born with a certain kind of knowledge.

You said it yourself, your atheist, but you don't act like a typical atheist, according to many Christians.

It is not that you do not believe in God, you don't believe in their God, you know there is something wrong.because of all the killing that he allows.

Their God is Satan

Answer 9

in the beginning there is death. all joshua kane's meet at birth. Joshua kane 1, never forgets the encounter. With very few exceptions, most other humans always forget. This situation is never conducted with the brain or the heart (as one might expect) but with the genitals. The tinglings we feel between our legs are not always caused by desire or fear. Mostly, it documents our negotiations with the Clattering Skeleton.

As i now realise that reading and writing have become a sleeping and waking obsession for me, and as i spend my time walking in the darkness i ponder about how each raindrop blossoms into a flower, how fire burns into my soul, how the redness and warmth spreads through my body and my bones feel like hot tar. I am a black flower , waiting for my petals to fall.

Answer 10

Many religious people don't think outside of their religion. In reality, religion does little to stop the basic "problems" they preach againsts. No opinion presented by me here but, the incidence of "hot button issues" - abortion, homosexuality, murder, theft, tax evasion, teenage pregnancy - just to name a few - are statistically similar within religious circles as they are in the atheist community.

It is easier to believe that if someone disagrees with your religion, then you must disagree with everything their religion states than it is to believe that someone could disagree with you on some topics, but agree with you on others.

So, those who state this to you misunderstand what their religion really means, and what being outside of that religion really means.