Tandi E. Marth
PHI208: Ethics and Moral Reasoning
Instructor F. Escobar
01.28.2013
Atheism is thought to be an immoral practice by many a religious folk. “Rational atheism values the truths of science and the power of reason, but the principle of freedom stands above both science and religion” (Shermer, 2007). Humanity is bound by the control of organized and man-made religion, and this is a fact that remains present throughout the history of civilization. Countless wars, confrontations, hostilities and bloodshed in historical times can be rerouted or directly attributed to the acquisition of power and control by the region’s governing religion. True religion should be one based on human morals and ethics, and should be upheld for the good of humanity; not for an omniscient being that isn’t proven to even exist.
A pure basis in scientific knowledge, fact, and faith is the center of atheism. Atheism literally means a disbelief in the existence of a deity (Merriam-Webster, 2013). Simply because the belief that humans were not created from a divine god or omniscient being does not imply that atheists are without faith or morality; in fact, many atheists believe in a higher power called the Universe, and this Universe with which we were created from has many moral laws for existence, success, humility, compassion, willingness, and morality in human life. Is something just and moral because a religious God says it is so, or does a religious God impose just morals specifically because they are fundamentally ethical and honorable? There are many human religions that encompass moral values, but many of them also offer the forgiveness of a deity if they do wrong against these moral values. An exemplary religion of this devotion is Christianity, which imposes Ten Commandments of human morality, and these commandments are mostly virtuous principles to abide. The falter in this belief system is that if one should disobey
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