You Can Know You Have Eternal Life
#16 – Dilemma of Morality (6)
Does Theism establish the Right Standard of Morality?
by Jim Mettenbrink

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     Morality, a system or code by which people live, ultimately originates from either atheism (no god religion) or theism (religion acknowledging a supreme being).  Although in the previous five articles we have only scratched the surface of the moral dilemma facing atheism, we conclude that atheism has no absolute standard of morality.  Atheistic morality is subject to the whims of individuals – exemplified by Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot.  But what about theism?  Does it, or can it, give an absolute standard of morality that produces stable lives and societies?  Further, how does one know which theistic standard is correct or are all correct?
     If there is a supreme being - deity (God), it is reasonable that the deity would somehow communicate to mankind.  The New Age movement acknowledges an afterlife spirit world (in contrast to atheism), evident by channeling (actually the millenia-old spiritism) where people contact the dead for advice.  New Age also espouses that every person has his own truth – he just has to discover it by a connection of some sort with the spirit of ancestors or animals or even the earth itself.  Ultimately everyone makes their own rules of right and wrong, thus there is no standard except self, and certainly no absolute, let alone written, standard of morality.
     Many religions have a written standard.  Six religions claim their standard came from their deity (god) by special direct revelation called inspiration.  They are Christianity and Judaism (Bible), Hinduism (Rig Veda), Islam (Quran), Zoroastrianism (Avesta) and Mormonism (Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price and Doctrine and Covenants in addition to the Bible).  Additionally, other world religions assert at least 16 other sacred books of special importance (but not claiming inspiration by a deity).  With so many inspired or sacred books having different standards and goals, the result is religious and moral confusion.  Are there many supreme deities or just one?  How do we resolve this dilemma?  And if there is only one supreme deity, how can we know this absolutely?  Further, what is the deity’s (ies’) purpose for us?
     Rather than discuss the pros and cons of each “inspired” writing, the focus will be upon the Bible.  If it can be shown that the Bible is from a singular supreme deity and proposes a distinct purpose for mankind with a special standard of morality, then (1) it necessarily implies that all other religious writings are inventions of men and will mislead men regarding what the one supreme deity desires for mankind.  (2) If the deity is our creator and has a purpose for us, then we are obligated to follow the inspired standard in order to satisfy the deity.

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      © Jim Mettenbrink; used by permission. rev.04xx-121229
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