Theism as Obvious Morality?

doctor(logic) commented recently that theism's morality is an attempt at objectifying what we all know already to be moral and right:

Theism says that our moral feelings are basically correct (they are a reflection of God), and that, broadly, we should follow our hearts. Indeed, Judaism and Christianity have been pretty much in lock-step with changing cultural norms from day one. . . . You might claim that theism dictates that people should behave in a way we all find morally good, but then why did we need theism to tell us to do what we all agree we should do anyway?

There are serious Biblical and historical problems with this view. Here I want to explore another side of the question: isn't this terribly culture-bound?

You see, Christianity (the form of theism we're really interested in here) speaks of things like loving one's neighbor, loving one's enemy, doing good even to those who cannot return the favor, helping the poor and the helpless, telling the truth, fighting for justice, and things like that. These things are highly valued in Western culture. One might easily think that Christianity just co-opted what everyone knows to be good ethics.

But not with a good look around the world. Hinduism's morality is very different. It says that by Karma, everyone gets exactly what they deserve in this life, based on how they lived previous lives. There is no motivation toward helping the oppressed in Hinduism. (The caste system stood firmly for millennia until other cultures challenged it.)

Buddhism comes in various forms; quite typically, though, it teaches that the highest good is resignation, to accept that things are as they are. There is no movement toward social improvement in that.

Tribal and folk religions have considered it good to kill their own children to satisfy their gods.

Marxist-oriented ideologies taught that what is good is the collective, which translated to the state; millions have been killed, millions imprisoned for that "good."

Asian cultures place a strong emphasis on saving face, which may often supersede telling the truth.

Kings and despots, petty bosses and thieves, and violent men of all sorts throughout history have followed a logic, endorsed philosophically by Nietzsche, that ethics are a matter of what one has the will and the power to do.

The ethical commonplaces that doctor(logic) says have been co-opted by Christianity are actually the product of Biblical norms, permeating our culture over many centuries. Western morality today agrees largely with Biblical ethics, even though it claims in large part to reject the Bible. We are too often unaware of how much we owe to our Biblical heritage.

Posted: Wed - July 5, 2006 at 07:09 AM |

Thinking Christian by Tom Gilson getCategoryName("<$CategoryUUID$>");

Theism as Obvious Morality?

Thinking Christian by Tom Gilson