(September 21, 2009 at 7:18 pm)Eilonnwy Wrote:(September 21, 2009 at 7:01 pm)ecolox Wrote: Could being devoted to just gods be anything other than Good? If someone is un-devoted to just gods, then how can they be good (or as you say "better")?
So every atheist here is bad? They don't give to charity, do good deeds, live a good life? They murder and rape and pillage? Is that what you think of us?
I don't know. Atheists may want to murder, rape, and pillage but don't because they think it's not worth getting in trouble over...who knows. You could provide a list of all the things you do and your motives for doing them, your overall life goal, etc for analysis/critique.
Eilonnwy Wrote:If you want to believe being devout means being good, fine. Believe what you want, it's you're privilege. But may I remind you that the 9/11 suicide bombers and abortion doctor killers, and the witch hunters, and the fighters of the crusades, the inquisitors from the middle ages...they were all devout believers.
If you believe in unjust gods then being devout doesn't mean being good (which applies to all of your examples I guess).
Eilonnwy Wrote:However, in the context of this quote, he is equivocating devote with worshiping god and nothing more. You are just grasping at straws here.
How is worshipping the just gods any different from being good - i.e. doing as the just gods will? How could the just gods not care if you showed your devotion by being good? Instead, you showed your lack of devotion (which doesn't bother them apparently) by living for vice instead of virtue? Why would they welcome you anyway? In my opinion Aurelius' statement doesn't make sense.
