Does Morality Need God?

This video shows why I consider philosopher Colin McGinn to be one of the most devastating critics of the suggestion that morality cannot exist independently of belief in God.

This pretty much sums it up

Moroni .. please tie up your robe

I bear no grudge against religious believers. I just wish they would all give more thought to what they supposedly believe.

Today's example is one of my favorite targets, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (i.e. the Mormons). Mormonism is based on visions of Joseph Smith Jr. who was 14 when he claimed to have his first direct encounter with the Almighty in a grove of trees on his family's farm in Palmyra, NY. However, I would love to know how many Mormons have actually read the accounts of the teenaged Smith Jr. For example, here is Smith Jr.'s first hand account of the Angel Moroni visiting his bedroom when he was 17:

"He had on a loose robe of most exquisite whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anything earthly I had ever seen; nor do I believe that any earthly thing could be made to appear so exceedingly white and brilliant. His hands were naked, and his arms also, a little above the wrists, so , also, were his feet naked as were his legs, a little above the ankles. His head and neck were bare. I could discover that he had no other clothing on but his robe, as it was open, so that I could see into his bosom."

Moroni apparently went on to tell the teenager staring at his nakedness that he could find a book written on gold plates which was buried on a nearby hill which he could translate with the aid of special "seer" stones. Thus we have the homo-erotic birthplace of the Book of Mormon.

This about sums it up ...

Soon they'll be praying to Santa

I swear I don't make this stuff up.

Now available from skymall.com: the Kneeling Santa Yard Display expresses "the true focus of Christmas." Inspiring scene is lit by 200 clear mini-lights atop the colorful printed PVC. Wire easel frame stakes into the ground. Simple assembly required. 5 foot cord. 48 inch Height.

Just imagine. Santa kneeling over baby Jesus in lights on your front yard. Only $129.99 U.S. - available now while supplies last: http://www.skymall.com/shopping/detail.htm?pid=102966465&c=

Christians - do you consider this billboard blasphemous?

Christians, do you consider this billboard blasphemous and, if so, why?

The Bible tells us that Mary (supposedly engaged to be married to Joseph at the time) was a virgin when baby Jesus was conceived. However, Matthew 1 makes it clear that Mary and Joseph were husband and wife. Roman Catholics, Lutherans and Orthodox Christians all laud the supposed perpetual virginity of Mary but there is little (if any) Biblical support for this interpretation.

My view is that graphics like this one cause controversy only because they force believers to confront the silliness of what they are asked to believe as fundamental tenets of their faiths. Their anger at "blasphemy" is really nothing more cognitive dissonance created by their implicit recognition that what they are asked to believe is delusional.

Miracles - why the double standard?

The splitting of the moon is a claimed miracle done by the prophet Muhammed in Islamic tradition. Slice a celestial body a leave it hanging in orbit - now that's an impressive miracle.

I would like to know whether those who believe in the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ (or any of the other supposed miracles described in the Bible) are skeptical of Muhammed's supposed dicing of the moon. If so, why are the miracles described in the Bible more reliable than the miracles described in the Qur'an? Please help me out on this.

Personal Correspondence with an Irish Bibleist

I received this message this morning:

I came across your web site the atheist missionary and was just wondering if you would be interested in a reasoned discussion by email on all things pertaining to God, religion , evolution, etc.

I am a 47 year old Irishman who isn’t a catholic, doesn’t drink , smoke or fight, and is not overly fond of potatoes. But I do believe in God and that the bible and the bible alone is God`s word.

If you are interested then the first salvo would be is do you think that you can have morality without a moral law giver?

I would be interested in your response no pressure or need to reply only if you want to.

My response:

Hi [name witheld]. Thanks for visiting The Atheist Missionary.

You say that you believe in a god, the Bible and that the bible is the word of your god. As far as your belief believing in your god is concerned, I would be interested to know why. What facts or reasoning, if any, do you rely on to support that belief?

You mention evolution in your message and, of course, evolution contradicts two fundamental tenets of your Bible: 1. the earth is only about 6000 years old; and 2. humanity was created by your god and did not evolve from eukaryotic cells. Of course, this is why fundamentalist Christians seek to discredit the "theory of evolution". Is this your angle? If so, I suggest that you read Jerry Coyne's Why Evolution is True. There is about as much debate about the theory of evolution in the scientific community as there is about gravitational theory. Are you familar with the concept of mitochondrial DNA? Have you read Richard Dawkins' The Ancestors' Tale and The Blind Watchmaker? Quite frankly, if you can reject the fact of evolution, you are probably willing to believe anything. Please don't tell me that you believe the story of Noah's Ark. Do you think fossils were placed by Satan in order to deceive mankind?

To answer the question posed at the end of your message, yes - I am convinced that we can have morality without a moral law giver. If you follow my site, you will see that the suggestion that we derive our morality from a deity is one of my favorite targets for criticism. Do you really think that baby rape is only wrong because your god says so? Would it become right if he said so? Of course not. Once you admit that god could not make what was obviously wrong right, you have to admit that morality must exist independently of your god (British philosopher Colin McGinn, does an excellent job of explaining this in his lecture series The Modern Scholar: Discovering the Philosopher in You which can be purchased through iTunes). Have you read Robert Wright's The Moral Animal, Peter Singer's How Are We To Live? or (my favorite on this issue) Hugh Mackay's Right & Wrong? Much greater thinkers than I have considered this issue at length and have determined that human morality is an evolved sense that is conducive to propagating our genes. However, if you reject the fact of evolution, I can see why you might have trouble accepting that line of thought.

Finally, I take it from your message that you consider the Bible to be a worthy moral code. This begs the question of whether you have read it in its entirety. If you haven't, please do. There are plenty of nasty parts. How do you decide what to reject (for example, stoning adulterers and homosexuals) and what to accept?

I will be posting your note (omitting your name to protect your privacy) and my reply. Please feel free to respond in the comment thread below the post.

Best regards, TAM.

THE WORLD IS VEGAN! if you want it

For those who are getting tired of my "vegan kick", I apologize. However, with the Christmas season close at hand, there is no time like the present to try changing your diet and lifestyle to eliminate the consumption of animal products.

Please consider going vegan. It’s incredibly easy to do. It is the best thing for you and for the planet. And, most importantly, it is the morally right thing to do. We cannot justify killing nonhumans for our trivial purposes, no matter how “humane” our acts of injustice are. [I copied this last paragraph from Professor Gary Francione's Animal Rights: The Abolitionist Approach website]

Sumerian people must have found God's making of heaven and earth in the middle of their well-established society to be an annoyance

This story describes the confusion that must have reigned throughout Sumeria 6000 years ago as god "created" the world: http://www.theonion.com/content/news/sumerians_look_on_in_confusion_as

Special thanks to my Polish correspondent

Something to ponder

Philosopher Peter Singer and researcher Agata Sagan have just published an article in The Guardian entitled "When Robots Have Feelings" which can be found here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/dec/14/rage-against-machines-robots

My view is that humanity should be expected to treat intelligent machines more humanely than we treat animals ... but that's not setting the bar very high.

Quote of the month

Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally: Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

Moron in action

I wish I could buy the guy on the left a beer. Nice quote: "Don't be a moron and act like you have all the answers". If you click on the screen, you can access a full screen version of the video on youtube.

Higher life forms must be laughing at us

The following 2 links convince me that if (as I believe is likely) there are life forms in the universe which are more advanced than humans and aware of our existence, they are either laughing or crying right now. The safe money is on the latter.

http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20091208/NEWS01/912080327/Critics-of-Cecil-Bothwell-cite-N.C.-bar-to-atheists

http://www.cofe.anglican.org/about/bishopsinlords/

Thanks to my Polish correspondent for alerting me to the North Carolina story.

Thanks to Stephen Law for providing the House of Lords link.

Friday's quote of the day

Twitter is a unique social networking phenomenon. For those unfamiliar with it, it allows you to maintain contact with hundreds (and, in many cases, thousands) of people who are interested in the same issues as you are.

This morning I was struck by a tweet by Rutgers law professor Gary Francione:

"I am watching deer from my window. I honestly cannot even begin to understand the urge to want to harm them in any way."

I live on the edge of a park in the heart of a small city in southwestern Ontario. We are occasionally lucky enough to catch glimpes of deer down by the river and I couldn't agree more with Francione's comment.

I have to get one of these for my secular Christmas tree

In case my wife is still looking for stocking stuffers, I would love a Flying Spaghetti Monster ornament which can be purchased from San Francisco artist Nifer Fahrion for $33 US plus shipping at: http://www.nifnaks.com/creations-shop/christmas/flying-spaghetti-monster-tree-ornament/detailed-product-flyer.html

Stand up and stand out

Please reflect on this quote today:

"You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life." Winston Churchill (1874-1965).

If you believe in something (atheism, veganism, etc.), stand up for what you believe in and don't concern yourself with what others will think. We live in a society where respect for religious irrationality and consumption of animals is so pervasive that people are literally considered freaks for going against the popular grain. History may end up judging today's contrarians on these issues as fools or perhaps (as I believe is much more likely) light years ahead of their time.

The evolution of scripture

Some Christians might consider this performance by Rowan Atkinson to be blasphemous. I prefer to regard it as an example of the inspired evolution of scripture:

A Monday morning middle finger salute to the power of prayer

In a Monday morning middle finger salute to the sterility of prayer, I encourage everyone to visit Save the Children and make whatever donation you can afford: http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/en/8837.htm

I just did and I am ready to attack the week.

Note - thanks to Owen Barder for suggesting this charitable link.

U Don't need a Bible 2 B moral

For those unfamiliar with NCAA football, Tim Tebow is a star quarterback for the University of Florida Gators. He is one of the most highly touted collegiate players and is expected to be drafted in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. He has also been indoctrinated since infancy by his Christian missionary parents.

As you can see from the picture above, Tebow is in the habit of inscribing Bible verses in the black paint he wears under his eyes during games to reduce glare from sunlight or bright stadium lights. Tebow changes verses from time to time and John 3:16 (KJV) is often referred to as the "Gospel in a nutshell". It reads: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

I pine for the day when an NCAA quarterback wears the following message in his eye paint: "U don't need a Bible 2 B moral" or "GO VEGAN" or even: "I believe fairies live under my bed". However, something tells me that the NCAA would not be as kind to those messages as the Bible thumping one.

Coming soon ... and I don't mean the rapture

Hugh Mackay is an Australian psychologist, social researcher and author of Right & Wrong. Right & Wrong provides an excellent discussion of secular morality and explains how moral mindfulness is developed without reference to religious irrationality.

Professor Mackay made my day today by responding to an email which I recently sent him. He tells me that he is working on a new book to be called What makes us tick? The ten desires that drive us and writes:

... there's a chapter on 'The desire for something to believe in'. I think Dawkins, et al, rather comprehensively miss the point on atheism when they criticise religion for, among other things, its irrationality. I think religion can be defended on some grounds - but certainly not rationality!

I have asked the Professor to let me know when his book is published and I look forward to reviewing it here.

How to Get Rid of Religion - an ambitious proposal whose time has come

Philosopher Floris van den Berg (one of the rising stars in the new atheist movement) is the Co-Executive Director Center for Inquiry Low Countries. In his essay How to Get Rid of Religion, and Why - An Inconvenient Liberal Paradox, van den Berg sets out his case in support of strong secularism. In his view, the state should deter religion in much the same way as it deters public smoking. van den Berg proposes several strategies of how to get rid of religion within the framework of an open liberal society. While most new atheist books simply diagnose religion as being irrational and immoral, this essay goes further by taking the diagnosis seriously and proposing a cure. Simply put, van den Berg's essay is a proposal for the treatment of religion and can be downloaded here: http://verlichtingshumanisten.web-log.nl/humanistische_denktank/files/how_to_get_rid_of_religion.doc

An oldie but a goodie ...

The poem If by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) is one of my favorites. I find it fits with the atheist theme because it takes both integrity and courage to be a skeptic in a world dominated by religious irrationality. If that sounds self-aggrandizing, it's not meant to be. Heck, I must be the first anonymous missionary in the history of recorded civilization.

If

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with triumph and disaster

And treat those two imposters just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,

And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!