Since Jesus liked to talk in parables, let me try one of my own.
In ancient times, before there were cities and kings, a small nomadic tribe traversed the lands, forever moving with the seasons, forever in search of food. Within this tribe there was a man, a man called Jacob. Jacob was an intelligent man, someone who would always observe the land around him and soak in knowledge. One day, Jacob was walking through a field when he came upon five grazing cows. Two of these cows were calves, feeding from their mothers. He approached the cows silently, spear in hand. Just one of these cows would feed his tribe. But as he approached, he noticed the calf feeding. He noticed the cows grazing. One cow would be a great meal for the tribe. Five cows would be a great feast. But what about many cows? What if he could trap the cows? Build some form of barrier to keep them in the field? Trapped inside, the cows could graze, he could provide fresh water and with a little luck, five cows would become many cows. He also began to wonder about the milk being fed to the calves. Was it suitable for him and his tribe? It would surely provide nutrients.
As Jacob pondered this, he began to imagine a continuous and plentiful food supply for the tribe. No longer would they need to travel in search for food. They could stay and always be full. Of course it took a lot of convincing and many years for Jacob's idea to bear fruit. The nomadic tribe left Jacob behind to tend to his insane dream but when they returned a few seasons later, they found him fat on milk and beef, his spear discarded. The land transformed into a farm. The tribe congratulated Jacob and they too settled down to enjoy what Jacob had created.
Many years later, a young member of the tribe, Isaac, wandered out from the village towards Jacob's farm. His journey left him hungry and Jacob was happy to share a meal. But Isaac's hunger could not be sated. He looked out at the field of grazing cattle and asked Jacob if he could have just one cow to kill and eat. But Jacob said no. The cattle who were to provide meat to the tribe were not yet ready for slaughter. Isaac didn't care. Even though his stomach was full thanks to Jacob's hospitality, he longed for more and if Jacob would not give him more, he would take it. In a fit of blind rage, Isaac killed Jacob and then slaughtered the fattest cow.
Isaac returned to the village, his stomach full, his appetite eased, the remains of the slaughtered cow on his back. It was two days before Jacob's dead body was found. When the village elder asked who had killed him, Isaac proudly stepped forward.
"Why did you kill Jacob?" the Elder asked.
"Because I was hungry," Isaac responded. "Because Jacob has all these cattle and he would not share."
"Those cattle are for the whole village," the Elder replied solemnly.
"There are plenty of cattle left. More than enough to feed us well through the winter."
"But you don't understand. Jacob was the only one who knew how to raise cattle and grow wheat. We have enough food for this winter, but what about the next? And the next?"
There were no laws within the tribe. Isaac's actions hadn't been against any kind of rules. Murder did not exist. But as the village elder would explain, Isaac's actions had not only doomed Jacob to death, but also doomed the tribe to starvation in years to come. His actions had been detrimental to the survival of their society, thus it was deemed wrong. It was deemed a crime.
And that, in a long-winded way, is the essence of morality. We are social creatures. We depend on each other to survive. Any action that threatens the survival and progression of the society is wrong. At a basic level, that's where right and wrong comes from. Our complex social structure and advanced intelligence has evolved that basic concept of morality but ultimately, morality is basic evolution and its origins are no different than the behaviour we see in other social creatures. Evolution gave us basic morality for our survival and then we built on it
The argument is often made that if there is no objective morality, there is no right and wrong. This is a load of bull. If all laws were thrown out tomorrow and everything became completely legal, society would collapse and we would doom ourselves. We aren't moral because a magic man in the cloud told us to be. We're moral because if we weren't, everything we've built would crumble. It's ultimately a very simple idea. What benefits the individual should benefit the collective and what benefits the collective should benefit the individual.
In ancient times, before there were cities and kings, a small nomadic tribe traversed the lands, forever moving with the seasons, forever in search of food. Within this tribe there was a man, a man called Jacob. Jacob was an intelligent man, someone who would always observe the land around him and soak in knowledge. One day, Jacob was walking through a field when he came upon five grazing cows. Two of these cows were calves, feeding from their mothers. He approached the cows silently, spear in hand. Just one of these cows would feed his tribe. But as he approached, he noticed the calf feeding. He noticed the cows grazing. One cow would be a great meal for the tribe. Five cows would be a great feast. But what about many cows? What if he could trap the cows? Build some form of barrier to keep them in the field? Trapped inside, the cows could graze, he could provide fresh water and with a little luck, five cows would become many cows. He also began to wonder about the milk being fed to the calves. Was it suitable for him and his tribe? It would surely provide nutrients.
As Jacob pondered this, he began to imagine a continuous and plentiful food supply for the tribe. No longer would they need to travel in search for food. They could stay and always be full. Of course it took a lot of convincing and many years for Jacob's idea to bear fruit. The nomadic tribe left Jacob behind to tend to his insane dream but when they returned a few seasons later, they found him fat on milk and beef, his spear discarded. The land transformed into a farm. The tribe congratulated Jacob and they too settled down to enjoy what Jacob had created.
Many years later, a young member of the tribe, Isaac, wandered out from the village towards Jacob's farm. His journey left him hungry and Jacob was happy to share a meal. But Isaac's hunger could not be sated. He looked out at the field of grazing cattle and asked Jacob if he could have just one cow to kill and eat. But Jacob said no. The cattle who were to provide meat to the tribe were not yet ready for slaughter. Isaac didn't care. Even though his stomach was full thanks to Jacob's hospitality, he longed for more and if Jacob would not give him more, he would take it. In a fit of blind rage, Isaac killed Jacob and then slaughtered the fattest cow.
Isaac returned to the village, his stomach full, his appetite eased, the remains of the slaughtered cow on his back. It was two days before Jacob's dead body was found. When the village elder asked who had killed him, Isaac proudly stepped forward.
"Why did you kill Jacob?" the Elder asked.
"Because I was hungry," Isaac responded. "Because Jacob has all these cattle and he would not share."
"Those cattle are for the whole village," the Elder replied solemnly.
"There are plenty of cattle left. More than enough to feed us well through the winter."
"But you don't understand. Jacob was the only one who knew how to raise cattle and grow wheat. We have enough food for this winter, but what about the next? And the next?"
There were no laws within the tribe. Isaac's actions hadn't been against any kind of rules. Murder did not exist. But as the village elder would explain, Isaac's actions had not only doomed Jacob to death, but also doomed the tribe to starvation in years to come. His actions had been detrimental to the survival of their society, thus it was deemed wrong. It was deemed a crime.
And that, in a long-winded way, is the essence of morality. We are social creatures. We depend on each other to survive. Any action that threatens the survival and progression of the society is wrong. At a basic level, that's where right and wrong comes from. Our complex social structure and advanced intelligence has evolved that basic concept of morality but ultimately, morality is basic evolution and its origins are no different than the behaviour we see in other social creatures. Evolution gave us basic morality for our survival and then we built on it
The argument is often made that if there is no objective morality, there is no right and wrong. This is a load of bull. If all laws were thrown out tomorrow and everything became completely legal, society would collapse and we would doom ourselves. We aren't moral because a magic man in the cloud told us to be. We're moral because if we weren't, everything we've built would crumble. It's ultimately a very simple idea. What benefits the individual should benefit the collective and what benefits the collective should benefit the individual.
