1. The origin of thought and consciousness are tough issues and far from being solved by religionists or secularists. Biologists account these phenomenon through the process of emergence. This is not to say that there is an answer to this perplexing issue, but certainly it is not more simply answered by the concept of a Judeo-Christian deity. Another reference here.
2. Morality is easier. Morality, ethics, social interaction and behavior have been around and codified long before any extant religion. In some respects, it has been the various organized religions that have co-opted ancient morality, much of which is based on the maintenance of social order to improve quality of life and ensure communal survival. Before the Ten Commandments we had the Hammurabi Code, the Confucian Analects, and subsequently we've had the Nicomachean Ethics and countless other works not directly related to theistic belief systems. Humans are generally moral animals, the good will act good regardless of their religion, and the bad will act badly.
2. Morality is easier. Morality, ethics, social interaction and behavior have been around and codified long before any extant religion. In some respects, it has been the various organized religions that have co-opted ancient morality, much of which is based on the maintenance of social order to improve quality of life and ensure communal survival. Before the Ten Commandments we had the Hammurabi Code, the Confucian Analects, and subsequently we've had the Nicomachean Ethics and countless other works not directly related to theistic belief systems. Humans are generally moral animals, the good will act good regardless of their religion, and the bad will act badly.
