If you do not believe in the Bible then where do your morals come from?

Question

If you say that you don't have any, then you are saying it is ok to lie, steal, cheat, and murder
So if you are going to say "I dont have any" Please dont answer.

Answer 1

What this individual is saying is that, if one doesn't base their morals on something, then moral truth becomes subjective, therefore, what is right for me, may not be what is right for you, morally I may feel that it is ok to steal for my own purposes, while others may disagree, but who are they to say that I am wrong, after all, your views are subjective too

Answer 2

There were moral teaching in civilizations long before the Old Testament was written, even certain Hindu texts outdate the OT by a large margin.

Evil, and thus good, are relative terms. There have been cultures in the past where such things as rape and physical violence, even murder, were not viewed as immoral. These activities were everyday parts of life, and the inhabitants growing up in these environments would not view them as evil, they would not know any different.

There are still cultures, though not to this degree, where many things we view as evil in our culture are not frowned upon.

On a more personal level, even in modern civilized cultures, a person's upbringing shapes their moral outlook. If you look at the prison population, it is largely overpopulated with African Americans, is this because African Americans are naturally more prone to harming others and committing crimes? No, it is because there is a much greater percentage of African American children growing up in poor, sometimes abusive conditions without many role models in their lives. Fortunately this trend is beginning to change, as is the over-representation of blacks in our justice system, but no one can say they wouldn't be doing the same things as these criminals if they had the same genes and upbringing that they posses.

In short, no God has anything to do with the psychological process of how we shape our world view and life philosophies.

Answer 3

Morals don't necessarily have to come from the bible.

Our parents and life experiences can teach morals too. Education also.

Maybe some people do not have the ability to be a good person without reading and preaching the bible...but there are many who are good whol- hearted people who do not believe and or read the bible.

Answer 4

I'm a Christian an I do not believe morality is specific to the tenets of Christianity. Those truths are "self-evident." CS Lewis develops this idea in the opening of Mere Christianity, a great read if you have the time.

Answer 5

If your morals DO come from the bible, then are you:

Stoning disbelievers?
Owning slaves (but giving them the sabbath off)?
Stoning any friends that do not kill disbelievers?

All of these moral acts (and many more) are requested of you in the bible (Deuteronomy, Exodus). Do you do them?

Assuming you do not, clearly you have the ability to judge moral behavior outside of biblical text. Even in opposition to it.

Well, So do I.

Answer 6

Some morals are hardwired into us all. Consider tribes cut off from everyone for centuries. Still they prohibit murder and theft without being told.

Answer 7

Lacking any transcendent objective moral authority, atheism relies on doing what seems "reasonable" to them. Thus it's most manifest legacy is that of men like Stalin and atheistic Communism, who did in-deed do what they deemed "reasonable" in slaying their millions. In contrast, none of the atrocities they attribute to religion were done in obedience to the teachings of Jesus and the New Testament, rather He who gave Himself for our sins stands in clear contrast to what atheism fosters.

Answer 8

Are you saying that the only reason you don't lie, cheat, steal and murder is because a book tells you not to?

You're either a psychopath, or you haven't thought this question through. Please let it be the latter.

Answer 9

Muder
"They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul; and everyone who would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, was to be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman." (2 Chronicles 15:12-13 NAB)

Rape
"If a man is caught in the act of raping a young woman who is not engaged, he must pay fifty pieces of silver to her father. Then he must marry the young woman because he violated her, and he will never be allowed to divorce her." (Deuteronomy 22:28-29 NLT)

And your the one to talk. Please STFU
CHEERS! DRINK*

Answer 10

My morals come from my own reasoning and my own understanding of the spiritual nature of things. Not all of us need a "superparent" god telling us "thou shalt not" in order to be moral.