Zone1 If Morality Doesn't Come From God Then Where Does It Come From?

[Hafar1014]

Easy question.

• MORALITY comes from God. When God gave Moses the 10 Commandments, those were the beginnings of morality. Therefore, morality is that code of civil conduct mentored and guided upon mankind by some outer, supreme, higher cause.

• ETHICS comes from man himself. Sans any higher, overarching authority over man, man sets up his own rules of good and evil, right and wrong based on trial, experimentation, observation, and common sense.

The core difference is that while morality is absolute, ethics are relative.

The government itself does not establish actual right from wrong, a moral, philosophical issue, it merely establishes the lawful from the unlawful, mostly to define its own boundaries of action, based on an interpretation of common law set forth by Justinian.

Do you have to be told that the NAZI movement was evil? Morality is a developed system of values controlling behavior that evolved because humans live in a social structure. Its a survival skill. Without a structure of social behavior there would be no order, unity, or cooperation. We would be extinct since we depend on each other.

The Jews gave us a universal moral code called the 10 commandments. Dont say the Bible its many works. Leviticus is civil law in the context of the age it was written. The commandments replaced the lack of morals created by polytheism. Polytheism allows anything you want to be moral. Just choose a god who supports your bad habit.

Were they inspired by a deity? Why did he wait so long. One could argue its party of our DNA like the ability for spiritual thinking.

 

[BULLDOG]

Yeah, but why? Where does their immorality come from then if it isn't being rebellious to the ten commandments?

I suspect that was your real question to start with. You think morality and ethics can only come from the bible, and any unethical behavior must be rebellion to the bible. That is just childish and wrong.

 

[TNHarley]

Then how do you explain the various interpretations and variations of morality among the many cultures on Earth?

Morality is subjective.

 

[TNHarley]

God is not a possession. Morality was later than creation since Man was beholding to man. Man created morality. But it must have taken him tens of thousands of years to do it.

Oh absolutely. The gap between modern humans & society is huge.

 

[TNHarley]

I'm pretty sure that people were able to hunt and drink water by themselves. Hunting I could see that being a hardship... possibly... but getting water? Unless you lived in a desert how could that possibly be considered a hardship?

If hunting and gathering was so easy, why do we have societies? Why do we have agriculture?

 

[Hafar1014]

Morality is subjective.

different cultures have different social systems they must adapt to. Thats not subjective. The basics of the 10 commandments will still be there in modern societies. A culture can also adopt destructive values

 

[ChristisKing]

If hunting and gathering was so easy, why do we have societies? Why do we have agriculture?

Well I already said that I could see how hunting could be a hardship if food was scarce, but you still didn't answer my question how finding and drinking water would be a hardship.

 

[Foxfyre]

Right Foxfyre. Morality varies around the world. Pretty complex topic once one realizes it.

Take the American Indians who practiced slavery, massacres, unimaginable cruelty, theft all as perfectly moral but had their own code of 'ethics' in deference to their chief, fellow tribe members etc. Introduction of Spanish Catholicism in the 15th and 16th centuries definitely had its downsides, but it also definitely changed the "Indian" culture to one far more 'civilized' as we would define that.

Modern anthropologists believe there are an estimated 100 or so isolated cultures, uninfluenced by any others, remaining on Earth. I would guess that the sense of 'morality' among those isolated cultures would be very different than those cultures with much or some JudeoChristian influence.

 

[Foxfyre]

Morality is subjective.

But, subjective or not, you said it is a result of human evolution. So since humankind is not all that genetically variable and not at all subjective, why would morality be so different among different cultures?

 

[Hafar1014]

Take the American Indians who practiced slavery, massacres, unimaginable cruelty, theft all as perfectly moral but had their own code of 'ethics' in deference to their chief, fellow tribe members etc. Introduction of Spanish Catholicism in the 15th and 16th centuries definitely had its downsides, but it also definitely changed the "Indian" culture to one far more 'civilized' as we would define that.

Modern anthropologists believe there are an estimated 100 or so isolated cultures, uninfluenced by any others, remaining on Earth. I would guess that the sense of 'morality' among those isolated cultures would be very different than those cultures with much or some JudeoChristian influence.

American Indians had many different cultures. They were nomads, hunter gatherers. Culture would reflect their environment

 

[TNHarley]

different cultures have different social systems they must adapt to. Thats not subjective.

ok

 

[ChristisKing]

But, subjective or not, you said it is a result of human evolution. So since humankind is not all that genetically variable and not at all subjective, why would morality be so different among different cultures?

Religion is a big part of it.

 

[TNHarley]

Well I already said that I could see how hunting could be a hardship if food was scarce, but you still didn't answer my question how finding and drinking water would be a hardship.

Dude, do you not understand what society has to do to make drinking water easy? There are still people on this planet that struggle to drink.
You cant just walk up to a puddle and drink it. You can get sick and die.

 

[Hafar1014]

But, subjective or not, you said it is a result of human evolution. So since humankind is not all that genetically variable and not at all subjective, why would morality be so different among different cultures?

Different environments. Hunter gatherers, nomads, Inuks, and Europeans are all going to be very different. In the end survival is the goal

 

[ChristisKing]

Dude, do you not understand what society has to do to make drinking water easy? There are still people on this planet that struggle to drink.
You cant just walk up to a puddle and drink it. You can get sick and die.

Yes, but back in the days of early humanity they didn't know this and there was no way to purify it.

 

[Foxfyre]

Different environments. Hunter gatherers, nomads, Inuks, and Europeans are all going to be very different. In the end survival is the goal

"Survival' is not the primary goal of JudeoChristianity though. Why is that?

 

[TNHarley]

But, subjective or not, you said it is a result of human evolution. So since humankind is not all that genetically variable and not at all subjective, why would morality be so different among different cultures?

Morality isnt a one size fits all. Morality can come from a cultures beliefs, geography, diversity etc.
Its like people that want a small fed gov and want the states to do most of the laws. What works for us in TN might not work for those in california. Californias "morality" damn sure wouldnt work here.

 

[TNHarley]

Yes, but back in the days of early humanity they didn't know this and there was no way to purify it.

And they got more knowledgeable. They figured things out, They worked together. Without morality, that wouldnt have happened.

 

[Dante]

This question came up in another topic and I wanted to turn it into a debate because I'm curious what people have to say about this. This question is for atheists and agnostics. How do we know what's right and wrong without the Bible? How does the government decide what's right and wrong without the Bible? Where does morality come from without the Bible?

"If Morality Doesn't Come From God Then Where Does It Come From?" It's a human construct as is religion.

You do know morality existed before the Bible? Or you're ignorant of some facts?

 

[TNHarley]

"Survival' is not the primary goal of JudeoChristianity though. Why is that?

I have never thought about that. It completely goes against nature.