Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

[f0rTyLeGz]

Sam Harris The Moral Landscape: Thinking About Human Values in Universal Terms

11. So people don't need religion to live an ethical life?

No. And a glance at the lives of most atheists, and at the most atheistic societies on earth -- Denmark, Sweden, etc. -- proves that this is so. Even the faithful can't really get their deepest moral principles from religion -- because books like the Bible and the Qur'an are full of barbaric injunctions that all decent and sane people must now reinterpret or ignore. How is it that most Jews, Christians, and Muslims are opposed to slavery? You don't get this moral insight from scripture, because the God of Abraham expects us to keep slaves. Consequently, even religious fundamentalists draw many of their moral positions from a wider conversation about human values that is not, in principle, religious. We are the guarantors of the wisdom we find in scripture, such as it is. And we are the ones who must ignore God when he tells us to kill people for working on the Sabbath.

[Q3210]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

You`re brave to post this topic. Yu gwine to mash more than a few corns.
Afraid to say anymore just now.

[quodlibet]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: f0rTyLeGz</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Sam Harris The Moral Landscape: Thinking About Human Values in Universal Terms

11. So people don't need religion to live an ethical life?

No. And a glance at the lives of most atheists, and at the most atheistic societies on earth -- Denmark, Sweden, etc. -- proves that this is so. Even the faithful can't really get their deepest moral principles from religion -- because books like the Bible and the Qur'an are full of barbaric injunctions that all decent and sane people must now reinterpret or ignore. How is it that most Jews, Christians, and Muslims are opposed to slavery? You don't get this moral insight from scripture, because the God of Abraham expects us to keep slaves. Consequently, even religious fundamentalists draw many of their moral positions from a wider conversation about human values that is not, in principle, religious. We are the guarantors of the wisdom we find in scripture, such as it is. And we are the ones who must ignore God when he tells us to kill people for working on the Sabbath. </div></div>

This of course assumes that religion was not at the core formation of some of those values that we then assume into common knowledge - even without the benefit of the origin story.

[britisha]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

**chukkle*

which &quot;religion&quot; are they referring to? the ones that deal with a &quot;deity?&quot;

Simply put, the answer is &quot;no&quot;....

..as for &quot;ethics&quot; one could relate accounts of unethical behaviour among the majority of &quot;those&quot; who swore to be ethical in their &quot;practice&quot; towards other human beings....as a result I guess they could be called charlattans.<span style="color: #000099">...it IS a new day..give thanks to the Almighty for countless blessings...have a great day.</span>

[Dr.Dudd]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

To most religious people religion is nothing more than glorified superstition.

And yes my wife is a minister of religion and I sometimes assist her in preparation for her sermons.

Now back to the topic.

Any belief that relies on logically unexplanable principles is based on what is the accepted definition of superstition.

Religion is the ultimate means of gratification.

if one achieve gratification through the practice of religion whether ethically based or not it is extremely difficult if not impossible to induce changes that upset that level of awareness.

The regular practice of Ethics requires more than basic knowledge.

this requires knowledge of secondary effects of ones action.

for instance, if the average person knew that the wealth of billionairs are made for them by armies of educated who had to, or their parents had to sacrifice to afford them skills that created that wealth for that billionaire, woul their attitude be different regarding who pay for their education?

how does religion teach this?

[Emperah]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

No an dem should outlaw all religions now. Every barbaric act pan dis earth is/was by someone sayin dem from such an such religion.
De ppl who deal wid true spirituality nuh duh dem tings cah dem is connected wid de universe which governs universal law. Religion a mans law given to de ppl in de disguise of God.

[britisha]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: dahJahPawtTwo</div><div class="ubbcode-body">No an dem should outlaw all religions now. Every barbaric act pan dis earth is/was by someone sayin dem from such an such religion.
De ppl who deal wid true spirituality nuh duh dem tings cah dem is connected wid de universe which governs universal law. Religion a mans law given to de ppl in de disguise of God. </div></div>

A wha yuh a talk seh?


DUH!!

How dem fi houtlaw religion when it is a set of beliefs? How dem agguh houtlaw wha ppl believe?


Dem can houtlaw di practice, but di religion itself? DUH!!! agen..and as for di &quot;barbaric act&quot; sinting whey yuh post...YAAAWN!!!

[Emperah]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

mi kno dem cyaan outlaw religion, mi jus a seh it would be de bess ting since like yuh seh a jus be<span style="color: #990000"><span style="font-weight: bold">lie</span></span>f

[britisha]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?




**aye sah**

[freedom-man]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: f0rTyLeGz</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Sam Harris The Moral Landscape: Thinking About Human Values in Universal Terms

11. So people don't need religion to live an ethical life?

No. And a glance at the lives of most atheists, and at the most atheistic societies on earth -- Denmark, Sweden, etc. -- proves that this is so. Even the faithful can't really get their deepest moral principles from religion -- because books like the Bible and the Qur'an are full of barbaric injunctions that all decent and sane people must now reinterpret or ignore. How is it that most Jews, Christians, and Muslims are opposed to slavery? You don't get this moral insight from scripture, because the God of Abraham expects us to keep slaves. Consequently, even religious fundamentalists draw many of their moral positions from a wider conversation about human values that is not, in principle, religious. We are the guarantors of the wisdom we find in scripture, such as it is. And we are the ones who must ignore God when he tells us to kill people for working on the Sabbath. </div></div>


ditto

[neutral]

Re: Do People Need Religion to Lead and Ethical Life?

Do people need religion to lead an ethical life....?

Absolutely bloody NO !,......the only reason SOME people need religion is because they are weak,we could all lead an ethical life without needing a reward at the end,but being humans some need to feel that religion offers them a get out of jail free card,that is why they cling to the &quot;eternal life&quot; option like a drowning man to a straw.

Take that option away and you would soon see how many of the hypocrites abandon religion,they only act religious because they think there is some kind of reward at the end,in the meantime some of them are the meanest,foulmouthed,mean spirited,spiteful,bunch of hypocrites you would care to come across.
They talk the talk but dont walk the walk,........a bloody bunch of hate mongering intolerant bunch of hypocrites you would be hard pressed to find.