We should take the Moral Highground

[DeistPaladin]

You and many other members continue to present a straw man of religious belief.

To be a strawman, I must quote you. My phrase was "boils down to little more than...".

This is a stance I can justify, since very often if not always, "God" always seems to want what the believer wants. It is not Jesus who declares a crusade or Allah who commands a Jihad but whoever occupies the pulpit at the time. Similarly, with social or political issues, people on both sides will always claim that the same God is on their side. For example, when the slavery issue was hotly debated in our country, both slave owners and abolitionists claimed to be doing the will of Jesus.

Terms like ‘imaginary friend’ and ‘sky daddy’ do not accurately reflect most believers’ concept of a supreme being.

"Sky daddy" is a mockery of "heavenly father". Heaven = sky in the ancient Hebrew language. Genesis 1:8 can be faithfully translated as "God called the dome sky" or "God called the firmament Heaven". It's not a nice term but I'm not under any obligation to be nice and cruel mockery is a way of exposing the absurd.

It just makes you sound like a jackass.

Don't ask me to be nice while you advocate the absurd.

You base your ‘innate moral sense’ on its evolutionary benefits.

You continue to confuse "why" with "should". Evolution is the reason WHY we have empathy. Evolution is NOT the reason we SHOULD use our empathy. Clear?

It follows from this that idolaters and blasphemers undermine the cohesiveness of the social unit and are an evolutionary detriment and should be recognized as immoral.

Again, you confuse the "why" with the "should".

And given how ripping down absurd traditions allow a society to move forward are good for society, I think you're assertion is on shaky ground but that's beside the point.

Morality is more than about interpersonal relationships. Morality also includes how we treat ourselves by cultivating virtues, like courage, temperance, and wisdom.

And you continue to confuse personally beneficial with morality. Such things may be virtues and admirable but they are not moral issues. Morality is a function of how we treat others, full stop.

From a theistic perspective the cultivation of virtue occurs hand-in-hand with establishing a right relationship with God.

So how's that working? Hint: not well.

Instead, you seem intent on winning and proving your superiority over others.

I'm not superior. I'm simply lucky enough to not be indoctrinated. My intent on "winning" is simply to help others to avoid indoctrination or break out of it.

You do this as opposed to seeking areas of agreement and mutual understanding.

I have no interest in coexistence with a religion that has no interest in coexistence with me. You'll note I spend no time ranting against Buddhism or other more benign faiths. I do not agree with them but I have no Buddhists seeking to rob my tax dollars or kick down my bedroom door.

Let me be blunt here: Islamo-Christianity doesn't want respect, coexistence or mutual understanding. It wants everyone on their knees or in the ground. Nothing less will fully satisfy this beast. Though you may be a moderate, you do the bidding of a monster that will stop at nothing less than total domination.

Your ‘innate moral sense’ should inform you that a hostile attitude is both rude and unproductive.

Your whining is so unbecoming.