Does Christian Morality Stand on its Own?
March 22, 2012 at 3:11 pm
(This post was last modified: March 22, 2012 at 3:12 pm by mediamogul.)
Do Christian values/morality, as introduced by the New Testament, stand on their own?
Let us say for the sake of argument that god does not exist and the Jesus of the New Testament is soley human and not divine. Are the values put forth in his moral teachings valid in themselves? Are they sound philosophically? I am speaking here of the ethics and prescriptions for human conduct only. Is this the highest moral system?
My thought is that, taken on their own, Christian values do not represent the highest order of morality/ethics. Turning the other cheek, obedience, loving thine enemies, elevation of the "poor in spirit", meekness, and poverty embody a moral system predicated upon weakness. I believe that strong healthy human values include things like pride, assertiveness, disobedience in the face of injustice, retaliation in kind or in self defense, and sometimes strife can be as beneficial to humans as peace. To me those are worldy values that do not contradict a human's nature as the Christian values do.
Let us say for the sake of argument that god does not exist and the Jesus of the New Testament is soley human and not divine. Are the values put forth in his moral teachings valid in themselves? Are they sound philosophically? I am speaking here of the ethics and prescriptions for human conduct only. Is this the highest moral system?
My thought is that, taken on their own, Christian values do not represent the highest order of morality/ethics. Turning the other cheek, obedience, loving thine enemies, elevation of the "poor in spirit", meekness, and poverty embody a moral system predicated upon weakness. I believe that strong healthy human values include things like pride, assertiveness, disobedience in the face of injustice, retaliation in kind or in self defense, and sometimes strife can be as beneficial to humans as peace. To me those are worldy values that do not contradict a human's nature as the Christian values do.
"A casual stroll through the lunatic asylum shows that faith does not prove anything." -Friedrich Nietzsche
"All thinking men are atheists." -Ernest Hemmingway
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." -Voltaire
"All thinking men are atheists." -Ernest Hemmingway
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." -Voltaire