In article <1184355723.730845.285850
@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>, sdr said...
> So the dilemma is this: How do we choose between
> good and bad instincts? Theism, for several
> millennia, has given one answer: We should
> cultivate the better angels of our nature because
> the God we love and respect requires it. While many
> of us fall tragically short, the ideal remains.
This naive formulation of the idea that the gods
provide the path to morality was disproved before
Christianity even existed. Look past the gods'
feet, and you will see that the trail continues
onward.
Further, it is apparent that various religious
groups have played the game in reverse: they've
taken existing or desired values and attributed
them to a god, then declared that the god set
forth those values in the first place. A
transparent trick, perhaps, but it consistently
fools the pious. (Examine U.S. fundamentalists'
attitudes toward abortion, cor****ate capitalism,
and welfare, for example.)
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Brian E. Clark
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