The Presumed Connection Between Morality and Religion
• Rachels begins by noting the appeal of the religious perspective.
• But what is the “religious perspective” and what does it have to do with ethics?

The Religious Perspective
• In the Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions it means first and foremost that God exists and is:
1. All-loving or omnibenevolent.
2. All-powerful or omnipotent.
3. All-knowing or omniscient.

• NB. It is the God of the traditional monotheistic religions that will be our main focus.

The Religious Perspective II
• Some other common features of the religious perspective include the ideas that:
1. God is the creator (and ender) of the universe.
2. We are able to commune with God (e.g. prayer).
3. The universe has a purpose and meaning; and so do our lives. (see Rachel’s p.54)
4. There is code of conduct handed down from God that we should follow (e.g. The Torah).

A Few Words On Atheism & Agnosticism
• It should be noted that not everyone adheres to the religious perspective.
• Some people are atheists: that is, they do not believe that God exists.
• And some people are agnostics: that is, they are unsure of what to believe.

Why Be An Atheist or Agnostic? I
1. Social forces are the main causes of religious belief.
• If you believe in God, ask yourself why?
• Chances are your belief in God is not the reasoned outcome of dispassionate evaluation.
• The fact that religious belief is primarily instilled through social forces (e.g. family, community, etc) makes this thought My religion is the only right one highly doubtful

Why Be An Atheist or Agnostic? II
2. The multiplicity of religious facts.
• There are on the order of 1,200 Christian organizations in North America, and over 30,000 in the world. There are also over 1 billion Muslims (with variations), almost a billion Hindus (with variations), and countless other types of religions.
• These religions clash with each other on numerous points.
• How can we be sure one of these religions is the right one?

Why Be An Atheist or Agnostic? III
3. The problem of evil.
• Many think the following four premises are inconsistent with each other and refute the claim that God exists.
1. God is omnipotent.
2. God is omniscient
3. God is omnibenevolent
4. Evil exists in the world (e.g. babies die of cancer).

A Modest Conclusion
• There is no doubt that religion has strong appeal for many people and that it holds a powerful grip on how people think of right and wrong.
• However, given that social forces shape religion, the multiplicity of religious facts, and the problem of evil, we can at least say this much. We should be very cautious in appealing to religious convictions to justify ethical claims. The atheist and the agnostic may be just as ethical (or unethical) as someone who accepts the religious perspective.

Two Religion-Centered Moral Theories
1. Divine Command Theory: “morally right” is a matter of being commanded by God and “morally wrong” is a matter of being forbidden by God. (see Rachels p.54)
2. Natural Law Theory: God, in creating human beings, determined that which is good for us and also determined the rules by which we should act.

Divine Command Theory
“Morally right” is a matter of being commanded by God and “morally wrong” is a matter of being forbidden by God. (see Rachels p.54).
• Rachels notes that under this (1) view right and wrong are objectively true or false (and not relative from culture to culture) and (2) we have a prudential reason to be moral.