meritocrat

Why do religious people think this?

Because religions offer a moral code, why does that assume atheists 'lack morals'?

Have Christians actually read what's in the Bible? Most of the moral principles listed there would be rejected by contemporary society.

Demigawd

Get thee to the Existence of God(s) forum to answer your question.

seebs

Well, assuming you want a real answer:

This is mostly a Calvinist thing, rooted in a couple of Biblical quotes where people say things like "There was nothing good about me at all until God made me whole".

Frankly, I think this is deepest idiocy. It always reads like hyperbole. People say things like "I am a total idiot" when they make small mistakes, not because they believe themselves genuinely and broadly stupid, but because a specific mistake strikes them, in hindsight, as so egregious.

Asha'man

As a generalization, they don't think this, they have been taught this. It's part of the brainwashing, part of the cult indoctrination. It's repeated to them every week (or so) by their leaders, who will tell them anything to make atheists and atheism look evil.

If morality comes from God, and only from God, clearly anyone who rejects God must also reject morality, right?

Atheists can't really be rejecting God due to lack of evidence, since the evidence is everywhere, so they must be rejecting God in order to live a sinfull life.

Obviously, the pople who hold this belief haven't really thought about it. Those that have, such as seebs, quickly reject it.

babelfish

Have you read C. S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity" yet? It's an excellent example of a very intelligent and imaginative man not being able to fight his way past the argument of "you need a moral standard to measure your morality against or else you are amoral."

What I would like to ask C. S. Lewis is, if we need God to tell us how to be moral, how do we know that God is good?

rubbercok3000

There is nothing GOOD at all in ANY human. The only GOODNESS comes from CHRIST. Rejecting CHRIST makes you a no GOOD person due to your dark nature.

Take a look at the newpaper and I think you will get the idea.

Id you dont have Christ it doesnt matter what you do, you are still bad.

rubbercok3000

The atheist Consequencialists versus the Christian non consequencialists is what it boils down too.

You guys dont even believe in Universal Truth so by definition you cant be good anyways!!!

Heathen Dawn

You’re wrong, rubbercok. There is no goodness apart from the Invisible Pink Unicorn (Peace Be Upon Her Holy Hooves). If you have her not in your heart, you have no goodness in you.

Corona688

Then why are there virtuous atheists, and monstrous christians, as well as vice versa? Religion has nothing to do with morality, imho, and nothing you've said has demonstrated otherwise.

seebs

It is possible that this is true, but if it is true, then Christianity and Christ are not detectably related.

If I had to pick which of two people had goodness in him, and my options were Gandhi and Fred Phelps, I'd pick Gandhi.