Andrew, in your last post, I think you make a fallacious argument, namely, you say that atheism makes you a better person. Atheism cannot make you a better person, or at least a more moral person. We can both go back and forth and point at people who claim to be in our camp who are evil. In my last post, I pointed to Stalin (yes, I incorrectly labelled it Lenin) as someone who did horrible things in the name of atheism. And you pointed out Harold Camping, whom I readily agree did evil in the name of Christianity. The point is that you cannot dismiss the truth of Christianity based on the evil that is done in its name because even if someone claims to be a Christian it does not mean that they are practicing their alleged faith correctly. In the same way, I cannot dismiss atheism because Stalin committed mass murder.
What I do not understand, and what I ask you atheists is, "on what basis do you adhere to a moral code?" In my mind, if a person is an atheist, there is no basis for ethics or a moral code.
Atheists attempt to dismiss Christianity by saying that its moral code is skewed. I take issue with that, but that is not the point. The point is that Christianity has the basis for a moral code -- a basis which calls us to love each other, to be unselfish, etc. Why should the atheist be unselfish? Because it benefits mankind? So what if it benefits mankind? If I am an atheist, why should I do anything ethical? For example, if I am an atheist and I can get away with cheating on my taxes, there is nothing in atheism which tells me not to do that. Also, the morals espoused by Christianity, and the Ten Commandments in particular, are the basis for most legal systems in the Western world.
Whether or not you like the moral code of Christianity, the Christian has a moral code. Whether the Christian follows that moral code all the time, is a completely different matter. In fact, we Christians tend to admit that we fail to follow the moral code all the time, thus our need for a Savior. Nevertheless, Christianity prescribes what the Christian should do; atheism does not prescribe what the atheist should do. In fact, it makes no sense for an atheist to have a sense of duty about ethics. On what basis does the atheist ever have a sense of duty?
Furthermore, this is also a proof for God's existence, and the main argument that is used by C.S. Lewis. We are all born with a conscience, a basic knowledge of right and wrong. Unless he is a sociopath, every human being has this innate sense of right and wrong. Where would this innate sense of morality come from if there was no God? This sense of morality is in every person, in every culture. In every country in the world, it is wrong to steal from another; in every country in the world, it is wrong to lie for no reason; no matter your faith, it is wrong for me to walk up to you, bop you on the nose for no reason and take your wallet. Where did the conscience come from unless it was placed there be God? The innate sense of right and wrong cannot evolve from the primordial soup.
Whether or not you like Christianity's moral code, can you admit that at least Christianity has the basis for a moral code, and that atheism does not?
