(January 25, 2018 at 11:24 am)polymath257 Wrote: Most people do not do such acts and are repelled by them. This is true whether or not they believe in a deity.
This type of thing happens because of a love of power over another. And it can happen just as easily for theists as for non-theists. All the theists need is to be convinced the victim deserves their treatment because they don't believe in the 'right' doctrines and that their deity approves. It has happened many times in history and continues to today. Theism isn't a remedy to the lust for power and cruelty.
And this is a wonderful example of why morality has little to do with religion. if your religion told you this type of act was not just approved by God, but demanded of believers, would it suddenly become good? No. So the dictates of a deity are not a valid way of deciding morality.
Morality depends on the person's willingness to follow the code it dictates. Some people walk inside the borders of morality with its different types; some don't.
