"Pope says atheists pick & choose their morals. Correct. Today I will be frowning on child abuse & not having a problem with homosexuality." - A McLordy
The Pope says that because he believes in the Great Chain of Being, running from God at the top to Satan at the bottom. Moral principles are commandments and commandments by definition come from the top down. They cannot be questioned. Atheists question authority, partly because we see so many abuses of authority that even if you believed in the chain of command you'd have to verify the authenticity of the commander and the particular command. That questioning in and of itself means there is a "meta-command" that says "Obey only legitimate commands from a legitimate commander." Ahteists take that meta-command seriously. The Pope does not because he is at the top and his word is God's word--infallibly.
Well put, George. Theists have slowly questioned authority too, through the ages, slowly making the bible more and more metaphorical. I'm reminded of a Sam Harris quote: "Religious moderation is the direct result of taking scripture less and less seriously. So why not take it less seriously still? Why not admit that the Bible is merely a collection of imperfect books written by highly fallible human beings."
The Pope says that because he believes in the Great Chain of Being, running from God at the top to Satan at the bottom. Moral principles are commandments and commandments by definition come from the top down. They cannot be questioned. Atheists question authority, partly because we see so many abuses of authority that even if you believed in the chain of command you'd have to verify the authenticity of the commander and the particular command. That questioning in and of itself means there is a "meta-command" that says "Obey only legitimate commands from a legitimate commander." Ahteists take that meta-command seriously. The Pope does not because he is at the top and his word is God's word--infallibly.
ReplyDeleteWell put, George. Theists have slowly questioned authority too, through the ages, slowly making the bible more and more metaphorical. I'm reminded of a Sam Harris quote:
ReplyDelete"Religious moderation is the direct result of taking scripture less and less seriously. So why not take it less seriously still? Why not admit that the Bible is merely a collection of imperfect books written by highly fallible human beings."