Non-Religious people... Don't you hate it when...?

Question

Religious people just assume that if you are a good person, you can't possibly not believe in God?

Yesterday I was buying a coffee. There was a mix up behind the counter and I could have walked away without paying for the coffee, and no one would have known. Instead, I pointed out the oversight and paid for the coffee. Later I got into a conversation with my Christian friend about the incident. She stated that there is no way that I could not believe in God, because I still have morals. WTF???

I'd've just chalked it up to just her, but it happens a fair bit. Do religious people generally think that it is impossible to do something good without 'the power of God' working in your life? Thoughts?

Answer 1

One of my pet peeves are people who equate morality with religious conviction. One response you can give (if you're in the mood to argue) is respond by saying "you act good because you fear going to hell, I act good because it's the right thing to do -- not because I fear punishment. So who exactly is the moral one?"

Answer 2

I'm religious, but certainly not in any conventional way (I'm not a Christian and don't believe in the Christian God).

There does seem to be a belief that morals come from God. But even Christians should be able to see that's not the case.

It's true that in the Christian faith the 10 commandments tell the followers what God deems acceptable. Of course it's also said that God's greatest gift to man is that He gave us free will. So the argument that morals come from God falls apart. He simply told his followers what His moral standards are, then gave them the choice to decide which way to go. The idea being (and one I personally believe) that accidental good deeds aren't really worth much, there needs to be a conscious choice of good over evil for something to be considered good/moral. Therefore, the 'power of God' is leaving us to make our own decisions, while encouraging us to take the moral path.

All that said, I consider myself to be a moral person. (I had a similar incident involving pizza - The delivery man made a mistake with my change, which would have made the pizza free for me, I pointed out his mistake and paid for the pizza)

Now, did a God I don't believe in make me do that? I don't think so. My own moral compass kicked in, saying that the money for the pizza would have come out of the poor mans pocket and I would have basically stolen the pizza.

Our parents, teachers, friends and society in general teach us our morals as we grow. There are accepted norms in society that allow us to live together happily. Most of us find the same actions reprehensible - murder, stealing, lying, etc. We managed to agree about these things long before there was a Christian faith, and in parts of the world where the Christian faith had never been before. There has been volumes and volumes written by philosophers on ethics. Plato and Aristotle wrote about ethics and were pagans. Kant coined the 'golden rule' - basically do unto others as you would have them do unto you (he was much more wordy about it, but hey, that's Kant) Some were Christian, some weren't. They (the Christian ones especially) do agree on one thing though - moral choices come from our free will, not through God forcing or influencing us to make the 'right' choice.

Answer 3

It does seem like it. Christian history is full of barbaric actions done by people who were doing God's work. I think believers need to assume that they are the only ones on the moral ground because if they were not then what is the point.
Burning at the stake wasn't invented by a steak house; is a total Christian invention.

Answer 4

I believe that religious people mostly are not that simple minded. Though there are a certain set ( I refer to them as
God-on-the-brain types) who can be awfully silly about it. And, yes, there are those who think that one can not possibly be good, moral, etc without a belief in a deity. I've tried to imagine what sort of tug of war goes on in their heads between kindness-hostility or honesty-dishonesty,etc., and I draw a complete blank. Apparently their good behavior is the result of compulsion from an outside source. Very hard to understand.
But lets give your friend the benefit of the doubt; maybe she doesn't really feel that you must have the spirit of God to be good. Maybe she felt that your good deed was the result of God's influence without your knowledge.

Answer 5

One thing that I do know is that all religious texts usually contain a multitude of lessons about life and morals, that is also usually the focus of religious classes of most kinds

So you can’t blame people for getting stunned when you reveal that you are not religious. They are more stunned that you are moral without going through some kind of “moulding” and are probably unbelieving when you say that you “developed” these morals without [insert name of religious entity]'s help

Same for me, despite being an atheist, I tend to find most self-professed “church going Christians” engaging in all forms of self-destructive and questionable activities that I wouldn’t do

Answer 6

Yes.
I started up an innercity basketball league and then people are shocked to hear I'm not a Christian like it is a crime. I even had some people pull their kids out of the league.

I have more morals not believing in God then I did when I did believe. Because I believe I have only myself to answer to.

Answer 7

Christians believe that God devised morals. Many believe that there is no logical basis for morals without God, so that moral behavior is implicit acceptance of God's existence.

Answer 8

Over the years, some of the most passionate fight for justice people I have known have been non-religious

Answer 9

It is a major misconception among the supposedly religious that those without their faith lack the necessary guidance to be honest.

But then there are some pretty dishonest 'religious' people.

Answer 10

your friend is so wrong. God is not all about good stuff. How many people have suffered because of religion. People don't have to be religious to be good.