"And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it." - Matthew 7:26-27
Earlier today while at work I was reflecting on the Bill Nye Vs Ken Ham debate, you know the big debate concerning Evolution Vs Creation. Well while thinking about this debate I thought about the perspective of an atheist. How they view life and what not without the belief in God or any deity. And it brought me to a question, and this question made me think concerning that perspective and life style, and the question is simple this: Where, or what, does an atheist base his or her moral belief upon, what is their moral foundation? As a Christian my moral foundation, the base for my moral standpoints and belief, is the Bible. Or in other examples a Muslims moral base is the Quran, the Torah and Tanakh to the Jews, the Vedas to the Hindus, ect. So what is the moral foundation for an atheist?
1. Is it the Law of Man?
This was one of the first things I thought could be the moral foundation for an atheist: written law of the state. There are probably atheists out there who base their moral standpoints on what is considered right or wrong in the eyes of the government. An example of that would've been the Soviet Union. Whatever the state says that's it! The law is the law! But even that brings question: would the morals change if the moral foundation, as in state law, changed? The laws of today are definitely different when compared to the laws of our ancestors. Before the 1960's it was considered morally right in the southern United States, according to the law, for segregation, and when you compare it to the law and mindset now, segregation is considered morally wrong (and don't take my words wrong, segregation is morally wrong even according to the New Testament!) So would it, the moral standpoint and moral belief, change if the laws changed?
2. Is it Majority Rules?
This kind of goes along with the last question but can be considered its own subject and question (cause sometimes the majority and the state don't always agree on issues (amen?)) Do atheist base their moral standpoint on the power of majority rules, as in "Well since most people believe this way I will base my view this way." And no one can deny the fact that this happens, whether atheist or Christian, that some people will bandwagon to a cause no matter what so they won't feel like an outcast, an outsider, or an enemy of the cause. But if the majority shifts with numbers and time from pro to con on an issue, does the atheist shift as well?
3. Is it based on Scientific Study and Discovery?
A lot of atheists, from the ones I've met, seem to be morally based more on this: Scientific Study and Discovery. They would say something similar to like "I base my life and views on the matter of Scientific Facts from evolution to the big bang." But remember, Science can be biased concerning facts and theories based on matter of perspective. Example: Even though both are arguably considered theories in the science community, an atheist would learn more into saying evolution is a fact over creation and intelligent design (obvious reason being that if they thought the theory of intelligent design was true then there is a possibility in the existence of a superior force or deity.) Mostly when discussing such matters with an atheist, who bases his or her moral standing on science, they usually say along the lines of "but majority of scientist believe in the data that supports this or that." So it goes back to Question 2 in a sense: if the majority of those who side with one side of Scientific Study and Discovery shifts opinion, does an atheist shifts his or hers as well. Or if more study is done, and it produced more date in favor of the intelligent design, would that atheist begin to shift or would he or she disregard and abandon science just to keep their personal standpoint. The key thing about science is that mostly its able to produce the "How?" but not the "Why?" of a question. Example: We can show scientifically how a sun can burn up energy concerning its gasses but not fully able to tell us "Why it does that?" or "Why of all things in the universal does it do what it does?" Cause when we ask "Why?" more than "How?" we begin to ask about its purpose, and when we begin to ask about purpose we begin to ask "Why does it have it purpose?" and when we ask that, we ask "Well how did it get its purpose? Something mustve caused it?" And base on what I learned in philosophy class, that would be a matter of causality, cause and affect, and to some philosophers, when concerning God, He is called "the uncaused first caused!" Sorry didnt mean to chase rabbits but felt like adding that when concerning the issue.
So in conclusion, the question still remains: Where, or what, does an atheist base his or her moral belief upon, what is their moral foundation? Base on the thoughts concerning each question that I had, it would seem that whatever foundation an atheist would have, it wouldn't be firm enough to stand upon or grow deep in. It would be no different than the verses I mentioned at the beginning of this blog, it would be like sand. Shifting and changing base on time, opinion, and other factors. This is proven when you think about the difference between our generation and the generation of people like Stalin, or those who supported segration against civil rights. Lets use Joseph Stalin for example, he was an atheist in ruling that did things that some atheists of today would be considered inhuman, yet people followed him. Overally, if anything, Im not presenting an argument but a question, no stones thrown here so please take no offense, if anything Im trying to get people do something that is rarely done today and thats to simply THINK!
Evangelist Mike Grant
A Cry in the Wild Ministries