Goodness with out God.

The connection between God and goodness is a precarious tight-rope. On one hand many say that with out religion there would be no morals. On the other hand, people believe that human kind is born with the ability for goodness. Then the believers retaliate with the idea that inherent goodness comes from God. But how can a believer force this idea onto an atheist? Connecting God with being good excludes non-believers from having any moral code. Which is not the case since many atheists or non-believers have more morals than religious people. It is not very “good” of us to say that a certain group cannot be good because they do not believe in God. ‘Good’ has many definitions, among them: morally admirable, estimable, of moral excellence, having desirable or positive qualities… These definitions do not say anything about God. They do mention morals however. But do morals truly spring from religion and God?

It is unfair to say that we need God to be good. While a belief in God or a higher being most certainly shapes many peoples morals and views this does not mean it is necessary to believe in God to have good values and a quality character. Besides, having a religious affiliation does not mean that you will abide by the moral code you were taught. According to studies, “…a believer in a religion is less likely to do a good deed than is a nonbeliever” (Conyers and Harvey 63). This evidence is so surprising because the Christian philosophy is supposedly “treat others as you would like to be treated.” Clearly, religion and belief in God does not always make a better person.

The same person that goes to church every Sunday may be the person who walks by you when you are in need of help. But if they see a perceived wrong to their religion they will suddenly react to defend their god and their beliefs. Does this make them a good person? They may believe in God but they are not putting into practice what their religion and God say should be done for those less fortunate or in need of help. At times human nature seems to only be capable of goodness with the threat of eternal damnation or for those deemed “worthy” of a good deed. “People tend to practice altruism toward those in their own group but not those outside it” (Conyers and Harvey 63). These people “have” God in their life. And yet they discriminate between those they will help. Is this good?