If you are atheist, do you live by certain morals? if so where do they come from?

Answer 1

Yes. They come from my common decencies, just like yours. No one is moral because the bible tells them to be. The bible says you should stone your son to death if he disobeys you. Have you ever done that? Of course not. Why not? Because it’s wrong, even if the bible says otherwise. You pick and choose which parts of the bible you will adhere to. What is the criteria you use to choose? The very same thing I use to choose what my morals are.

Answer 2

Morals may be a genetic/biological feature that's part of the survival of the fittest.

Humans probably depended on each other to survive pre-agriculture (ergo probably why people today are still so concerned with fitting in and rejection!!). Ie one wouldn't want to be weak/injured or become an outcast as this may mean not being fed or sheltered.

So our morals may have developed out of our genetic pre-disposition to be sympathetic and empathetic because we know at some point we would like/need others to show us empathy to survive. I think someone earlier mentioned "self-preservation."

And of course our environment may also determine whether our morals are stronger or weaker. It may depend on a society's justice system and whether our parents showed moral and ethical behaviour that we learn as we grow up.

Answer 3

I am not sure what you mean by "certain morals." If you mean, as a secularist, can I codify in advance of a situation the moral principles by which I would respond to that situation? If this is what you mean, I would say: No, I do not live by certain morals.

However, if you mean, have I thought about moral principles and how they might apply to situations I might encounter. Yes, I have thought about such moral principles.

Where did these moral principles come from? The answer is not too mysterious.

I was taught these moral principle, first by my parents. And yes, my parents' moral principles were informed by Christian moral principles as expressed in the Bible and other authoritative religious sources, as they were filtered to my parents (and to me) by the Christian denomination of which our family was a member (Seventh-day Adventist Church).

I was also taught further and other moral principles by the reading I did (novels, books of philosophy, other non-Christian scripture, etc) outside the influence of my religious upbringing.

I was also taught by life experience and by attempts to apply traditional moral principles to real life situations. And the inherited principles did not always work. Therefore, I modified the principles--not radically, but significantly.

This process of leaning by experience continues and will continue to modify my moral principles the rest of my life.

Answer 4

Oh man, this question AGAIN, eh?

My morals do not come from a book, a god, a little voice in my head. They come from me. We humans have a LONG history of morals, and they get passed down through the generations, just like our sex drives and our survival instincts do. We can call these instinctual morals "Common sense, compassion and empathy".

If I do something wrong, malicious.. like, vandalize someone's property.. what will that person's reaction be? Hurt? Confused? Wondering "why me"? Angry?

Why on earth would I want to inflict that kind of anguish on someone??! The answer is that I would not, and do not!

*hiccup*

Answer 5

To me, the question is why is it inherently necessary for atheists to have morals? Almost everyone does. Why is that? What is the evolutionary reason for it? I think the sense of right and wrong comes from the Creator. Atheists, I think, believe it comes as a result of natural selection working on the social unit to help collective survival. But I still don't get how an individual would develop altruism and self-sacrifice in situations that clearly go against ultimate self-preservation. Humans actually do this. I don't think evolutionary explanations satisfies the question adequately.

Answer 6

Morals were the foundation of civilization. Since you address your question to Atheists, I have to believe that you think morals originated in religion. Morals predate even the ancient religions that have been scrapped thousands of years ago.

Answer 7

I learned mine from my parents and society. And society developed morals so we wouldn't kill each other off or have a worse life than necessary. It's all a matter of evolution. If you think that morals come from the bible, then why aren't you out stoning homosexuals and misbehaving children to death as the bible commands? It's because you get your morals from your society just like the rest of us.

Answer 8

Some of my morals I derive from Bible scripture, especially . the raping, pillaging, begetting, slaughtering of innocents,turning my back on other creeds,and the regular "putting to the sword". Any other morals that I may possess are drawn from defrocked Bishops and Evangelical fraudsters.

Answer 9

Our evolved heritage. Even chimpanzees have a precursor morality that can be observed. Read " Moral Minds " by Mark Hauser and you will see this area is under scientific purview.

Answer 10

Logic and empathy are the basis of morality, not the mythology of our simian ancestors.

...

Here are my "10 Commandments:"

1. Thou shalt not make rash decisions.
2. Thou shalt not hurt others.
3. Thou shalt not hurt thyself.
4. Thou shalt not believe in things which lack supporting evidence.
5. Thou shalt not pretend that humanity is the center of the universe.
6. Thou shalt not ignore the future consequences of your actions.
7. Thou shalt not ignore those who are suffering.
8. Thou shalt not stand and watch while others are working.
9. Thou shalt not value ignorance over an education.
10. Thou shalt not pretend that humanity is the only sentient form of life.