Theists: Would you still be a good person if you didn't believe that there was a God up there watching you?

Answer 1

The FIRST QUESTION theists always have for me when they find out I'm atheist is, "So why don't you just go kill someone or steal?"

This makes me REALLY wonder about their own moral fiber, since clearly the fear of punishment from a Big Daddy in the sky is the only thing keeping them in line.

Or at least, they believe that's the only thing keeping them in line.

Answer 2

IT DOES NOT MATTER WHETHER YOU ARE AN ATHEIST OR A THEIST:

I am not an Atheist. I am a Theist, but I don't believe in any religion, dogma, or superstitions.(May be you would say that believing in God is the beginning of superstition. But I can't help.) I believe in the existence of God. There exist dubious Theists as well as Atheists always. Neither all Theists are good persons nor are Atheists bad person and vice-versa.

Atheism and Theism are two systems of belief. Atheist literally should mean “He who speaks verifiable Truth”. An atheist does not believe in God because the existence of god is not verifiable. An Atheist is absolutely right from his point of view. He is confident in himself and he does not require the concept called God.

A Theist believes in existence of God. This belief system works advantageous for him. This belief system helps him to consolidate his strength as a support helps the climbers in its growth. The necessity of Theism is similar to using a stick to jump over the Pole Vault post. But superstition should in no way be allowed in the name of God and Religion.

Atheism or Theism , whichever system works best for you; it does not matter. Doing good is after all common for both systems of belief. One should not do good just because God watches us.

Probably in distant future all will be either Atheists or Theists.

I love Atheists and Theists equally.

Answer 3

The question is not whether we would or could be a good person. As atheists have said all along, it's possible to be a "good" person and not believe in God at all. Morality and religion are not necessarily dependent on one another.

Unfortunately, just being good isn't good enough to be admitted into Heaven. God's standards are absolute perfection: one sin, and you're disqualified by His standards. But when we accept Christ as our Savior, His sinlessness is imputed to us, and God sees us clothed in Jesus' righteous perfection.

So being good is something that anyone -- religious or otherwise -- can do. But being able to share in the perfection and holiness of Jesus rests solely upon our acceptance of Him as Lord and Savior.

Answer 4

I would still be me. I am the only one who decides what I will do... no matter what my beliefs are.

By the way, I don't do the things I do because I think some God or Goddess is watching everything I do. I do the these things because I Want to.

Pagan

Answer 5

I went several years not believing anyone was looking down at me and I was still a really nice person. I like being a nice, good person. It makes me happy.

Answer 6

In order to answer your question, I must clarify how you view "good" since that is the real issue at hand and greatly varies based on personal beliefs. I do believe there exists TRUE good, TRUE evil, TRUE right, and TRUE wrong which transcends any religious title. God instilled this into His children from conception just like He instilled the basic knowledge and yearning for communion with Him. Humans, however, are imperfect and attempt to manipulate reality for their own satisfaction. As such, humans will attempt to redefine words like "good", "bad", "right", and "wrong" to fit their agenda.

An extremely important question to answer, though, is "how do you define 'good'?" Hopefully, some examples will help.

1) In the Nazi society, "good" was defined by very strict genetic traits, commitment to a fascist dictator, and hatred toward certain segments of society. A soldier was "good" by murdering Jews or Christians.

2) In a true Christian society, "good" is defines by following the commandments of Someone higher than themselves, following His Word (the Bible), and accepting His grace and forgiveness. By this definition, "good" would mean self-sacrifice, treating others as one would treat themselves, and loving your enemy. "Good" means fighting evil, hating the sin but loving and helping the sinner.

3) In a liberal society, "good" means not offending anyone, respecting all religions but Christianity, accepting any lifestyle, and letting government control all aspects of human life. To be "good" here, you must accept abortion, hate the fact that the US is the greatest country in the would and condone the indoctrination of harmful lifestyles to our children.

There are many other examples but I will stop here. My question remains, "what do you mean by good?" Good without God is a "good" that is solely based on the prejudices and leanings of the person, persons, or society that wants to define it. One day, very soon, "good" will mean mass-murder of Christians and Jews on a global scale. "What do you mean by "good"?"

Answer 7

i would be the same person whether i followed a goddess or not.

everyone is born with an inate sense of right and wrong...some choose to ignore it.

bb

Answer 8

If the atheists do it, why can't the theists?

Answer 9

Good question! Atheists don't need a god or a book or a list to tell us how or why to be a good person. WE are naturally good.

Answer 10

Of course. Why would I be any different than you,for instance,if you consider yourself a good person?