I’ve heard it said (just today in an online debate, actually) that many acts of kindness and generosity result from “religious sensibilities.” And yet, I wonder. After all, I can honestly say that when I see someone in trouble, my first instinct, though I’m a life-long atheist, is to help. And I have tried to do so on many, many occasions. I'm a life-long donor to the Salvation Army, as well as other charities. And by the way, I have many atheist friends of whom I can say the same, and know of many public figures, known atheists, who have been among some of the most altruistic people in history. (Andrew Carnegie, Bill Gates, many others.)
So I guess the question I’m raising is this: Do we do “good deeds” because of religion, or do we do good deeds because doing them is a part of our own nature? That is, would we do them if we were religious or not? (And I would love to hear from any member who is willing to say that, if they lost their religion, they would stop doing good for other people.)
And is it not unfair, then, to suggest that religion has any role to play?
It seems to me this is rather akin to the old question – everybody who has ever misplaced their car keys just before an important meeting will understand this – “why is everything always found in the last place we think to look?” Well, the answer is obvious, isn’t it? It’s because once you’ve found them, you stop looking.
Or the old adage that “everything happens in threes!” Well, is that really true? Or do we just stop counting when we get to three, and start again?
In other words, is it not really a false attribution to equate religious sensibility with altruistic behaviour?
Discuss
So I guess the question I’m raising is this: Do we do “good deeds” because of religion, or do we do good deeds because doing them is a part of our own nature? That is, would we do them if we were religious or not? (And I would love to hear from any member who is willing to say that, if they lost their religion, they would stop doing good for other people.)
And is it not unfair, then, to suggest that religion has any role to play?
It seems to me this is rather akin to the old question – everybody who has ever misplaced their car keys just before an important meeting will understand this – “why is everything always found in the last place we think to look?” Well, the answer is obvious, isn’t it? It’s because once you’ve found them, you stop looking.
Or the old adage that “everything happens in threes!” Well, is that really true? Or do we just stop counting when we get to three, and start again?
In other words, is it not really a false attribution to equate religious sensibility with altruistic behaviour?
Discuss