(December 22, 2015 at 12:22 pm)Jenny A Wrote:(December 22, 2015 at 12:14 pm)athrock Wrote: If there is no heaven, no hell and life ends at the grave, then does it really matter whether one chooses to live one's life as a Stalin or as a St. Francis?These are the options? Really?
Why or why not?
And yes how you behave in this life (the only one we have any evidence of) matters because it makes a difference in this life. Do you really think many people consider possible punishment in an afterlife when deciding whether to feed the squirrels, visit grandma, or have premarital sex?
Premarital sex? Sure, lots of people consider that "wrong" for religious reasons. Just no one you know maybe.
But your answer seems to center on "how you behave in this life...matters because it makes a difference in this life", so let me follow up with this:
If I make life better for my tribe at the expense of your tribe (think food, water, limited available resources, better schools, etc), have I done something that is good or bad?
And using my original example, being a Stalin clearly makes a difference in this life...it makes life better for me and my friends. Screw you. Or worse.
Why should I feel guilty about the fact that I'm enjoying my life to the fullest?
And if I'm genetically bigger, stronger, faster, or smarter than you are, is it my fault that I can kill and eat more red meat or get promoted to the top of the corporate ladder and you can't?
So, I don't think you've given me a reason why I should live one way or the other. You've given personal preferences about how I ought to live, but why should I care what you think?
