Christians: How Are Atheists Moral Without Absolute Morality?

Question

If there are absolute morals and they are the morals of the bible (god's word) then they should always apply to every situation.

Is it always wrong to lie?

According to the bible it is. ** Ex.20:16, Lev.19:11, Dt.5:20, Pr.12:22 and Eph.4:25. Rev.21:8 states, "All liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone."

Suppose a woman in blood-drenched clothing comes to your front door, in tears, begging you to let her in because her husband is beating her. You let her in and give her water and console her and, all of the sudden, there is a knock at your door. It's the woman's husband and he wants to know if you've seen her.

Do you lie and break "god's absolute morals?"

If you are a truly moral person.......YOU BETTER LIE TO HIS FACE!!!

My point is that morals are not concrete or law... they are relative to the situation.

Your idea of good and my idea of good can be very much different. "Good" and "bad" are very subjective words.

Morals developed out of want to avoid unnecessary harm. There is no concrete, absolute list of rules to follow. It's just common courtesy and common sense most of the time. It doesn't need to be explained to a person. Do you really think the bible is what keeps everyone from wandering about killing people and stealing? Of course not.

So if Christians believe that morals come only from the bible and god and are absolute/unchanging then why is it that atheistic countries such as China and Japan have much less crime than countries with a majority of Christians in it?

The US is much worse in not only murder, but also theft, fraud, assault, rapes, and many others. China has less policepersons, a bigger population, yet less crime. Japan is also largely unchristian, yet, crime in Japan falls far below that of the US.

How can this be?

Answer 1

Everyone, Christian or not, has to use reason and common sense in order to know what to do. Commandments, rules, and laws are useful, but, in the end, it's up to each person to know what is happening and act in a good way.

Answer 2

Rahab lied to protect the Jews and she was rewarded by God. The quotation you wrote above about liars is hyperbole. It is a literary style common to the Jews at the time. Yes, lying is sinful, but God looks on the heart.

There will always be conflicting moral imperatives, and we must choose the greater. For example, "do not lie" is a moral imperative that in your example conflicts with another moral imperative, the "sanctity of life." Obviously, the sanctity of life (protect the woman) should be chosen over the do not lie when moral absolutes come into direct "either-or" conflict. So, the argument above is a straw man argument that really doesn't address your issue.

Your issue is this: Morality is relative, and God does not determine morality. Let's take a look at your statement to see if it is correct.

Is morality relative? Well, I would ask you...is there any culture anywhere on earth that does something that you believe is morally wrong? If so, what right do you have to impose your absolute belief on another culture? Suddenly things don't look so relative anymore.

Do atheist countries have less crime? (btw, America is secular) No, of course not. They simply have tighter governmental control over citizens. In china, not only are there officers on every street corner (they are so skinny they look like boy scouts, but I'm sure they are armed!) and if you screw up they charge your family for the bullet that they put through your head. Japan has a very tight social heirarchy and belief system, plus they are not permitted to own weapons and they are also 99% racially homogenous. That takes a bite out of crime. BTW, have you ever been to Asia? I have. And what about the businessmen who adulterate their products with lead and other toxins in order to save a buck and they don't care who dies? Only in China, honey. And all the thinkers live in prison where they are brutalized. Please don't call that moral.

People are immoral because they are separated from God. I notice that you seem to have a lot of things that you personally consider to be moral absolutes. Just noticing....

Answer 3

>>>whilst christians say that morality isn't feasible and not using a perception in god.. Are they particularly announcing that they themselves might don't have any obstacle killing, raping, and stealing in the event that they knew nobody was once watching?<< Christians do not say that morality is not possible with out God. At least now not Christians who particularly recognize their stuff. Morality may be very feasible with out God. The query is, whether or not salvation is feasible with out Him. A utterly one of a kind challenge. As for killing and so forth ... historical past has proven that a character, or a society, is a long way much more likely to do the ones matters whilst they've eliminated God from the photo. That's why essentially the most murderous regimes in human historical past had been Atheist Communist ones. .

Answer 4

ive answered this before.

if telling the truth gets you into more trouble than being silent, then dont say anything.

if telling a lie to ssave another persons life will send someone to hell, it would be according to the judgment of christ, not i.



i think the dividing of the word correctly is that rev 21 says those that LOVE and make a lie will have their part in the lake of fire.

just like the love of money is the root of all evil, and not just money alone.

if a woman came to me covered in blood, the first thing a person MUST do is call the police and tell 911 operators that it is a life and death situation or the possibility of it, then the next thing to do is stall the husband at the door. if he breaks the door getting at you there is reasonable evidence that Police can use "force" to subdue the husband.

Rage is a spirit of satan, and satan in the last days will rage in the hearts of men. it is a very hard thing to control when it happens.



p.s. when i was a child i did the things of a child. i lied through my teeth, not to get in trouble. if jesus means what he said literally NO ONE that says a lie as a child would ever enter the kingdom of heaven, unless, he confesses his sins and repents of them.

in a marriage if any spouce considers saying a white lie is the correct course not to hurt the others feelings or to stay out of trouble first implies one or both are not actually living the spiritual gospel. white lies do not save a life.

and if a person seeks to save their life they will LOSE it.

a true spouce will always expect and tell the truth.

but to save someone's life, it might be necessary to lie. you are not saving your own life and you may be saving the child of God That God wants to be saved.

it might be accounted as murder to actually give a person up to the authorities who you know are seeking to kill them.

there is a dvd out where such a circumstance actually happened in Nazi germany. OH the Bastards Movie.

Answer 5

People lied in the Bible... There was once this man who went to Egypt with his wife. He told the Egyptians his wife was his sister in order to avoid some sort of mishap. I forgot his name... and the details of the story!

Answer 6

If there are no absolute moral truths, then how does your argument make sense? Your basic premise is that those who have morals must always live by them, and not to do so is wrong. If that's not an absolute truth, then what is?

Answer 7

well...there are very few atheists in jails, so we must just be born with morals. Morals CANNOT be taught ,you either have them or you do not....so if you feel the need to LEARN what is right and wrong, there is already something wrong with you.

Answer 8

QUOTE: "Do you lie and break 'god's absolute morals?'"



You use your head. We live in a world where it is sometimes necessary to opt for the lesser of two evils, and in such a case there ought to be no difficulty in deciding what you ought to do.

Answer 9

Just for your information: The longer a question is, the less readers and answerers you will get. You have too many non-related questions in one. That alone means many theists will simply skip your question without thinking about it.

Answer 10

Hate to break it to you, but I've seen Communist governments at work in Eastern Europe. China may have fewer official police, but they have a huge network of informants and secret police.

Answer 11

Us Atheists are Immoral with no emotions like a killer robot apparently...



BEEP BEEP BEEP... EXTERMINATE!!!

Answer 12

How is this a question?

This is a travesty of a question

It is, moreover, a rant!!!!



...(you can't fool me)...

XP

Answer 13

You wrote:



"Your idea of good and my idea of good can be very much different. "Good" and "bad" are very subjective words."



And that is exactly why God did not Adam to know about good and evil. And that is also why he desires (acutally expects) all people to submit to and obey Him and His Word in all matters.

Answer 14

they arent..