This made the rounds recently on social media. I liked the first season of TRUE DETECTIVE but this bit is stupid. It’s the kind of garbage that atheists love spouting as if it’s a deep truth.
As a practical matter, what motivates a person to do good is none of my business. I have no reason to care. Let’s say a person does good b/c they believe the Flying Spaghetti Monster has promised them unlimited pasta in the afterlife. If I’m an atheist that might be weird, I may disagree with their conception of ultimate reality, but so what? I’m just glad he’s being a good person. His motivation is his business.
What if, instead of the expectation of divine reward, they avoid doing evil out of an expectation of divine punishment? Would that person no longer be a “piece of shit”? If I pay my taxes out of the kindness of my heart or b/c I fear imprisonment, does it matter?
Catholics distinguish between imperfect and perfect contrition. Imperfect contrition is when you’re sorry for your sins b/c you fear punishment while perfect contrition is when you’re sorry for your sins b/c you love God and don’t want to offend Him. So yes, the latter form of contrition is better than the former but both are still valid. Imperfect contrition is sufficient for penance. The atheist wants to control your mind more than the religious. The atheist demands perfection. Anything less than perfect and you are a “piece of shit.”
If there is no ultimate meaning, if material reality is all there is, then shouldn’t we care only about practical results? Why do atheists care so much about what is in someone’s head?
This made the rounds recently on social media. I liked the first season of TRUE DETECTIVE but this bit is stupid. It’s the kind of garbage that atheists love spouting as if it’s a deep truth.
... I also liked the first season of True Detective. I thought the second season was passable, given the big appeal was the weird Lovecraft-like cult crime from the first season. I'm probably all done with the show though now.
As a practical matter, what motivates a person to do good is none of my business. I have no reason to care. Let’s say a person does good b/c they believe the Flying Spaghetti Monster has promised them unlimited pasta in the afterlife. If I’m an atheist that might be weird, I may disagree with their conception of ultimate reality, but so what? I’m just glad he’s being a good person. His motivation is his business.
... Very utilitarian.
What if, instead of the expectation of divine reward, they avoid doing evil out of an expectation of divine punishment? Would that person no longer be a “piece of shit”? If I pay my taxes out of the kindness of my heart or b/c I fear imprisonment, does it matter?
... Is it different in effect? I'd say so. Maybe not. Maybe people's intentions don't matter and only their actions do. But, again, that's utilitarian.
If there is no ultimate meaning, if material reality is all there is, then shouldn’t we care only about practical results? Why do atheists care so much about what is in someone’s head?
... There's plenty of historical reasons to be mad at organized religion, and many people have personal reasons to be mad at organized religion. They may be reductivist in their arguments and complaints, like the character from the show, but so is the argument that utilitarian ethics are all that matter.
I think why we do things does matter. So does the law. And so do most (all?) religions.