DLL, I am unclear what impact a Godless environment really has on people. I think that we are each saying different things, really.
You are saying that you understand that good child development is important--a healthy home, happy parents, a safe, nurturing, calm way of living--but that evil comes from being Godless, if I am understanding you correctly.
I am saying that whether children are taught religious beliefs is absolutely neutral in the outcome of their childhoods, that religious beliefs are totally separate from being taught how to conduct oneself in a moral and ethical way (which is essential, but is mostly taught by parental example), and that having religious beliefs do not predict in any way how a child will turn out.
I am also saying that really healthy people do not act in ways religious people perceive as sinful--that alcoholism, drug addiction, criminal behavior are the result of genetics to some degree, but to abusive or neglectful parents to a much larger degree, and are not willful behavior at all.
I think we may be confusing terminologies, misunderstanding each other. I said that any belief system which provides comfort to the believer, and does not harm others, has some positive role to play in a person's life. But by belief system, I am talking about a spiritual belief system--Christianity, Bahai, paganism, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, etc.
Incest is an action, not a belief system. Incest is actually a good example of what I am trying to say. Any healthy person just knows inside that incest is absolutely wrong. It violates in every way a smaller, less powerful person with whom you are in a position of trust, and damages them immensely. It is wrong because it hurts another, period. You do not need to be a Christian to know that! God does not need to set a standard for behavior; it lies within any decent person who has himself been well parented.
Stealing and lying are very complicated issues. I have only compassion for someone who is desperate and has to steal to feed a hungry child, for example. In a world with as much wealth as we have, I believe society has the responsibility of providing a basic, emergency safety net, especially for children, who do not choose their parents. I do not believe stealing for any other reason is justified.
According to a lot of studies on lying, most of us do it many times every day, Christians included. Lying simply to avoid hurting someone's feelings when no good would come by telling the truth, seems justifiable to me. Most people do not have a problem with lying when they write a sick note to excuse a child from school, or "call in" sick for themselves, when they are just really tired or need a psychological break. Certainly, lying to cover up adultery, or to get away with something you did that is wrong, is not justifiable to most people, and I would agree with that, of course. |
