Why do atheists say they're good without God?

Question

First of all, without God there's no such thing as objective good because there's no standard outside of relative human opinion by which to measure moral behavior. To the rapist, rape is good. To the murderer, murder is good. To the pedophile, he's doing nothing wrong. Of course, there are arguments from civil practicality, but social ethics aren't the same as true morality because they're relative to the cultural moral climate of the time, not objective.

But besides that, atheists tend to be degenerate people when not in the public eye. The beauty of the internet is that people can be themselves anonymously, and it's no big secret that the most viscous people are the atheist trolls. Not saying all or even most atheists are like this, but it's a microcosm of a much bigger truth, that amoral people aren't truly good, they simply put on a front for the world to prove how good they are, but behind the scenes are immoral.

It's religious folk who behave good even behind the scenes because they assume God is always holding them accountable. All atheists have to fear is the civil law, peer judgment & social morale, so they can be evil when nobody's looking. Theists are like this too but at least they admit that they're not good, only God is good & that's their objective standard.

Why can't atheists just admit that "good" is subjectively derived without God? And that if certain "evil" things were legal, they would happily engage? I guess being amoral also encompasses dishonesty.

Answer 1

The truth is, you can't technically be good without God! That's literally a fact! If there is no God, like most atheists supposedly believe, then there is absolutely no objective morality which means that there is also no objective standard of right & wrong, it would all merely be subjective & it would differ so much that the notion of what was moral & immoral would differ between every single individual, every single culture, etc. Subjective morality is not only not feasible, but it's not even real!



Even if an individual who claims to be an atheist says that they adhere to subjective morality, they still use the objective morality that God has put in place. Even C.S Lewis said in The Abolition Of Man that when he looked at all the diverse cultures in the world, they all agreed on basic morality! This is just one great reason to prove that objective morality does exist!

Answer 2

Why do christians say they're good with a god?



Anyone can follow a set of rules to avoid punishment... but to do good just because you can and want to, with no external motive, That is goodness.



You people have never and will never, have a monopoly on morality.

Answer 3

Because they dont' know the true God Jehovah. God is love !

Atheists can have morals and ethic. Not all so called "Christians" have it.

Answer 4

Why do atheists say they're good without God?



- Because we are. You are the ones who need to be lead around by the nose.



without God there's no such thing as objective good



- First, that is your opinion and ONLY a brain dead fundie would think that rape as a marriage proposal and slavery are "good".



because there's no standard outside of relative human opinion by which to measure moral behavior.



- As a fundie you have no idea what "intelligence" is, so it makes sense that you do not consider that part of the process, but that is what we use, NOT "opinions".



To the rapist, rape is good.



- To god and the bible, rape is good, try actually reading it.



To the murderer, murder is good.



- To god and the bible, murder and genocide is good, try reading the bible.



To the pedophile, he's doing nothing wrong.



- You have to define pedophilia. For the church and the Vatican, 12 years old is the age of consent. Your rules differ, but YOU have decided your "opinion" is the correct one.



but social ethics aren't the same as true morality because they're relative to the cultural moral climate of the time, not objective



- And since the age of marriage 2000 years ago was 13 to 15, your god RAPED a 15 year old. Where is the morality verse civil/cultural moral climate.



But besides that, atheists tend to be degenerate people when not in the public eye.



- Says the person who screams hatred on street corners denigrating everyone they see.



that the most viscous people are the atheist trolls.



- Says the person who screams hatred on street corners and refuses basic services to those people they hate.



that amoral people aren't truly good,



- Which is why the prisons are filled with fundies.



they simply put on a front for the world to prove how good they are, but behind the scenes are immoral.



- Which is why the largest group of pedophiles are religious clergy. They rape at a rate almost 10,000 times greater than the "average" person.



It's religious folk who behave good even behind the scenes



- Read above, brain trust.



they assume God is always holding them accountable.



- Says the person who can rape and pillage their entire lives and then kiss the ecclesiastical AS$ and be good to go. ZERO accountability.



All atheists have to fear is the civil law, peer judgment & social morale, so they can be evil when nobody's looking.



- Yes, they "can" be, but that is why the prisons are filled with fundies. They can rape and murder all they want, but as most people on their days of execution, they know that they will be in heaven since they have kissed the ecclesiastical AS$. Again ZERO accountability from their celestial Santa.



Theists are like this too but at least they admit that they're not good,



- What priest or clergy has EVER admitted that they were wrong for molesting those hundreds of children.



Why can't atheists just admit that "good" is subjectively derived without God?



- Because we don't consider rape, slavery and genocide as good.



And that if certain "evil" things were legal, they would happily engage?



- Says the person who thinks that they are omniscient.



I guess being amoral also encompasses dishonesty.



- Says the person who will lie under oath in court.

Answer 5

Because we are. Get over it.

Answer 6

Your fairy tales don't interest me and fear doesn't work on me.

Answer 7

Because they're so arrogant and prideful enough to think they created rules and morality and are better than God, when they are not.

Answer 8

Why pick on atheists? Of the 7.5 billion people on this planet, 5.3 billion of them do not believe in the Christian God but follow other religions and worship other gods. Most of them are not atheists. Atheists are with the vast majority of people in being good without God.

Answer 9

They are just in rebellion against Him.

Answer 10

Sorry but NONE of that is in ANY WAY relevant to the supposed existence of your supernatural father figure.

Answer 11

they only say that until the plane is about to crash. then they become a bit more open minded.

Answer 12

Wow, who taught you that nonsense. What a horrible thing you wrote. None of that is true. People with trauma or inconsistent parenting act out the trauma they experienced. In religion, like Islam, people are lost in false doctrine- Muslims are Arab xtians who are taught to rape even animals before masturbating. Pedophiles were not only sexually abused but turned on sexually and the trauma is confused with feeling turned on. Pedophilia isn't a relationship but assault and manipulation, people who never got therapy.

Answer 13

There are a lot of Christians in prison who converted after they committed the crimes so what does this do to the validity of your question is a statement that has showed over time that those who do not believe and yet do good for the earth are more valued in the eyes of God than those who think they can continue to sin and not be held accountable. It is not for humanity to judge those who are God's helpers.

Answer 14

Objective morality is an argument AGAINST god, so we can forget the illogical 'facts', begging the question and assertions of Candice. A hint for Candice, the fact that of 'all the diverse cultures in the world, they all agreed on basic morality' is evidence we evolved morality, and not that it came from some god (or specifically YOUR god).



First, if objective morality does exist (something you have yet to prove), that doesn't mean it derives from a god. There could be other reasons why it is objective. Tautologies are objectively true and don't require a god. Which shoots down your last paragraph.



Secondly, the objective morality argument fails, because if a god created morality, then it is arbitrary, not objective. If a god says something is good because it is an objective, then it is external to that god, not created by it.



Third, the god of the OT is most definitely immoral, and following the logic of the NT and many modern day Christians, the god of the NT is also evil. If atheists don't believe because Satan has blinded us, that means not only has this god allowed this, but to punish us for all eternity for something that Satan has done allegedly done is also immoral.



As for 'atheists tend to be degenerate people when not in the public eye', how do you know? You can't, so clearly you are making this up. May I remind you of the 9th commandment AND Proverbs 6:16–19 "There are 6 things the LORD strongly dislikes, 7 that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a LYING tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out LIES, and 1 who sows discord among brothers".



Also, Ted Haggard, wink, wink.



Here's were you ignore all atheists and award BA to some assertion of a theist.



Edit: Over 50% of the Christians on this question have blatantly lied. This means 1) Christians are in no position to lecture anyone on morals, and 2) if you need to lie for your religion, then that religion is as worthless as HenPeckeds none existent PhD.

Answer 15

If you can't work out the answer on your own then you must be really stupid

Answer 16

Because in their imperfect mind, many feel that they are good without God. There is no need to debate with them on this subject. However, man was created with a spiritual need. Whether or not they acknowledge and satisfy their spiritual need in order to gain lasting contentment and tranquillity is a matter of each individuals choice.

Answer 17

You are absolutely correct in your first paragraph. There is no objective morality! There is civil practicality for the majority of subjective morality since from an evolutionary stand point it has enabled us to survive as individuals and as a society. The rest of your "question" however, is your conclusion based on your false assumptions of the morality of Atheists and Theists.

Answer 18

Why are you unable to be good without a god to give you rules to follow? You must know the difference between right and wrong...that it's bad to kill people and good to be kind, unless you are a psychopath with no empathy? Fool.



Atheist

Answer 19

You're so ignorant. 70% of living people aren't Christians. The other religions have heir own morals. Jesus' Golden Rule was stated by Confucius 550 years or so before Jesus was claimed to live. The Bible encourages rape, murder and pedophilia. Read it! Christians and Muslims are the most vicious people I see here. I was a Christian most of my life, and I scolded such people as you who disgrace Christianity. USA prisons are full of Christians. There are very few atheists there.

Answer 20

Because a drooling quadtard thinks he has it pretty good too, if he never knew better.

Answer 21

Sorry but ethics and morality existed long before the Bronze Age.

Answer 22

Morality is subjective until applied to law. Law is objective. Laws however can be immoral. If you need a God not to do evil, you are immoral. Atheists may be mean to you, but that's not without cause. Christians force their way of life on everyone in the public eye. Christians are anti-intellectual, anti-science, anti-women and anti-progress. So what do you expect? We are constantly being told we're evil and going to hell. Christians would kill atheists if they were given enough power. So Christians being mocked should be expected.

Answer 23

It's called enlightened self-interest, and has nothing to do with your imaginary friend.

Answer 24

Actually to the rapist, rape is bad, to the murderer murder is bad etc Just because they do it doesn't mean they consider those acts good. They know those acts are evil but still go on and do it.



Anyway, what makes God good? because the bible (or any other religious text) says so OR is it because you have examined God's behaviour in these books and have come to the conclusion that his behavior is perfect?



To me, Judeo-Christian God is evil! I don't need him to let me appreciate what good is and what bad is. We can see actual consequences of doing bad - you kill someone, you can see how hurt their loved ones are, you rape someone, you can tell by how they are fighting it meaning they are being hurt and do not want to engage in the act...all you need is to examine the harm these evil acts can cause to others and put yourself in their shoes...



All you need is humanity and empathy, not God and these qualities in humans have evolved over time as it is more likely that people in society will treat you well if you treat them well.



The atheist does good because they understand it, they do it out of their humanity...the religious person does good because of authority; he is told to do so by an invisible being, that's the difference between atheists and religious folks

Answer 25

Mostly because the stories about gods are not true. Not even one of them.

Gods do not exist.



Just like the stories about wizards are not true. Not even one of them.



There is no magic. Magic exists only in stories.

Even if you use different words for it and say divine power instead of magic and god instead of wizard.

There is no magic.

There are no gods. Not your god nor any other god.

Just stories.



I am good without god.

Answer 26

For the same reason that some drivers say they are safe without a seat belt.

Answer 27

They constantly lie to themselves

Answer 28

Those atheistards turn their "morals" on and off when they want to - how convenient.

Answer 29

I've never used that phrase; morality is based on empathy; people cannot be viscous; consider dividing text into paragraphs.

Answer 30

Because they are good without God.



As far as your stupid assertion about morality, atheists' right and wrong is determined by legal systems, social mores, empathy, and conscience. That's what makes atheists morally superior to Christians. Christians aren't capable or allowed to use those components to form a moral base. They are obliged to use the moral standards dictated to them by their entity. They have no say in the matter.



Not only that, it's really stupid to be brainwashed into doing what a mythical god who's existence has never been proven tells you to do.



"But besides that, atheists tend to be degenerate people when not in the public eye.". LOL! You're obviously lying or been with atheists when they're not in the public eye and being degenerate. It's probably both, a degenerate liar, LMAO!



Odd that you'd say that since 90% of the degenerates in prison are Christians.

Answer 31

I have to be responsible for my own actions and have a conscience to guide me.

Answer 32

Because it's true, but truth is something believers don't want.

Answer 33

Because they don't need God to be good. They're good without God.

Answer 34

Because I would assume they say this since they don't actually KNOW GOD or HIS SON JESUS........



If one doesn't believe in GOD WORD........than what is left on earth to actually believe in......false gods, the fallen angels, their leader satan..........

As a Christian, I pray all have time before their life ends to actually take time to hear GOD'S VOICE and accept HIS SON'S GIFT OF SALVATION............

Answer 35

just because atheists are good without any promise of an extra life. Anyway the prisons in uk are well overpopulated with christians and by far they abuse abortions but they can sin then get forgiven isnt that very convenient ?

Answer 36

It's OK. See, we cannot judge. Even Pope Francis says they go to heaven as long as they are GOOD. God etched His laws in our hearts n minds, that atheist have them too, reason that they do good deeds.

Answer 37

The only way primitive religion exists today is through the child abuse of forcing it into very, very young children but thanks to better education and growing intellects so many teens are able to discover the truth, throw off the indoctrination and step into the real world!



Atheism is not a conscious decision or a belief but a realization, those that cannot escape remain prisoners of their conditioning!



Atheists are good without your non existent deity because they do not have to mix with the terrible intolerance, hatred, bigotry, homophobia and persecution practiced by Christians towards others!

Answer 38

You've got a lot of hatred in your heart. You need to let go of all the tension and just chill. I'm sure god won't mind if you take a day off, have a good sh!t, and loosen the shackles a bit. Get yourself a woman for fücks sake, have a ball before you lose all your marbles.

Answer 39

Even with God there's no objective morality. The usual standard of behavior is based on the concept of not harming another person. That's seen in any social species. There are some individuals that go against that, but they're an exception.

Do you have a source for your claim of degenerate behavior in atheists? Care to explain why, if Christians are morally superior to atheists, less than one percent of federal inmates are atheist but make up roughly 3% of society?

If the only thing stopping you from killing your neighbors with a flame thrower is the threat of divine punishment, you're not moral; you're a sociopath.

Answer 40

you lot are so brainwashed lol. of course normal people can be good as well

Answer 41

The primary reason is false pride. They have been turned into consumer tyrants. Trillions of dollars have been spent convincing them that they are very smart, very cool, and don't need anything but the products being sold to them to find happiness.



Pride blinds us to truth. Logic does not work with people who worship logic and use it like a weapon to justify their foolishness. Your observations are accurate. Never forget, Pharaoh met God and still hated Him. He had all the proof a man could want but could not deal with the idea of something higher than himself. We are dealing with Consumer Pharaohs.



Good question!

Answer 42

Because we are?



If we agree that morality has to do with well-being, the actions we take became objectively good or bad in respect to the effect they have on well-being.



By including god, you didn't get rid of subjective morality, just moved who the subject is (in your case it's god).It is no more objective to say that something is objectively moral/immoral because it goes against the will of god, as it is to say that it's moral/immoral because a dictator says so.



Now you might say, well you say that well-being is the ground for morality but what's stopping someone else to say that it's something else? Well, they are free to do this, but in that case, we are talking about something else, and not morality.

When you are including god in the equation, you are still talking about well-being - for you it's just whatever god says increases well-being. But, truth is, you don't need god for that, because as soon as you have a standard (well-being), judging actions by that standard become objective.

Answer 43

I think your 'question' is a lie-filled rant.



You're hardly in the position of judging the morality of others, especially the millions of them you've never met.

Answer 44

"To the rapist, rape is good. To the murderer, murder is good. To the pedophile, he's doing nothing wrong."



You seem to be talking about Catholic priests...

Answer 45

You do realize that the Vatican spent countless millions on lawyers for pedophile priests and on covering up their thousands upon thousands of crimes? They laundered money for the mafia, and ex Nazis, and they tortured scientists to death for saying things like the stars went on almost forever, and weren't a curtain that literally ended at the sky, which Heaven was literally outside? I am a good person, because I understand pain, and pleasure, and care for all of "God's Creatures" which in my opinion is everyone. Not the chosen ones, and God is simply eternal energy, it does not think, we do. Just stop trying to fool me with nonsense, it never worked, even when I was five.

Answer 46

Well, actually, almost all of the evidence shows that they aren't good. They're miserable in fact. And who can blame them? It's depressing believing that everything created itself from absolutely nothing and that nothing in life even matters in the end.