"Love thy neighbor as thyself" or the golden rule, can be found with slight variations throughout philosophy and religion http://www.religioustolerance.org/reciproc.htm
Whether the god is anthropomorphic, or monistic, the good reasons we find to treat each other with respect and kindness are important moral truths. By treating others with respect and kindness, we treat ourselves with respect and kindness. No fear of judgment is necessary there. To apply the golden rule adequately, we need knowledge and imagination. We need to know what effect our actions have on the lives of others. And we need to be able to imagine ourselves, vividly and accurately, in the other person's place on the receiving end of the action. The golden rule is best seen as a consistency principle. It doesn't replace regular moral norms. It isn't an infallible guide on which actions are right or wrong; it doesn't give all the answers. It only prescribes consistency - that we not have our actions (toward another) be out of harmony with our desires (toward a reversed situation action). It tests our moral coherence. If we violate the golden rule, then we're violating the spirit of fairness and concern that lie at the heart of morality. On Apr 3, 12:29 pm, Kierkecraig <[email protected]> wrote: > Throwing God into the mix really doesn't answer the question of what > is morality and why we should act according to it. Like Plato wrote, > is it pious because God says it is pious, or does God say it is pious > because it is pious? > > If it is good because God said so, then it leaves morality looking > very contrieved and meaningless. If it is good because it is good, > and thats why God says it is good, then throwing God into the mix > really doesn't help us answer the question. It only tells us that God > must have some sort of standard by which he judges whether something > is good or bad. Philosophy has attempted to ascertain that standard. > So whether we are atheists, or whether we are theists, it appears we > can carry on the same conversation. If we accept that something is > good because God said so, then in a way, we are atheist with regard to > morality. Morality doesn't really exist at all in that sense. Its > just a standard arbitrarily established by one intelligent being. If > we say that something is good because it is good, and that God > believes it is good because it is good, then the theist and the > atheist are saying the same thing. > > On Apr 3, 3:30 am, frantheman <[email protected]> wrote: > > > In Dostoevsty’s novel, “Crime and Punishment”, Raskolnikov commits > > murder with the justification, “If God doesn’t exist, then anything is > > permissible.” Dostoevsky, who advocated a slavophile Christianity, > > uses the novel to argue that rationalist atheism leads to nihilism and > > chaos and that a belief in a redeeming God is the only solid basis for > > human life. > > > The theistic argument for an ultimate basis for morality is, of > > course, easy; morality is divinely deemed, proscribed, part of the > > template of existence. It gives answers to the question, “why be > > moral?” on different levels; because God has ordained it, because it > > is a God-created part of human nature, because God will punish you if > > you aren’t and reward you if you are. > > > Where can atheists find an answer to the question; why be moral? More > > practically, perhaps, if we accept secular models for organising > > society (and this is the basis of western societies), where do we find > > arguments in favour of behaving morally? In the wake of the financial > > collapse, many commentators have identified a lack of moral > > sensibility on the part of those managing and playing the markets as > > one of the underlying problems leading to the collapse. Is the basis > > of law and regulation merely deterrent; the fear of the consequences > > of being caught? > > > Francis --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Minds-Eye?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
