My point there, is that the church teaches ethics, but for the wrong reason. If the student loses the church, he loses the ethics. This is why secular ethical teaching is a much better choice.

Let’s be fair here. That isn’t necessarily true ? many of us were raised in the Christian church, lost the church, and didn’t loose our sense of morality and ethics. However, I do agree that teaching morality and ethics without also instilling fear of a supernatural being is a better way to go.

The reality in this case, like most others, is this individual was likely mentally unstable to begin with. The causes of his instability are unknown ? though I suppose they could be a product of his strict religious upbringing. A personal God is all about the individual, and is in essence, a severely narcissistic belief system. I could certainly see how this kind of indoctrination could lead to a sociopathic personality.

This was a crazy person that attacked those in the organization he felt wronged him. I don?t believe he was good before that and then lost his ethics when he was abandoned by his youth missionary training center.

Whether he was religious or not religious is no more relevant than whether his hair was long or short.

My point here, is that the church teaches ethics, but for the wrong reason (threats and fear, not humanism). If the student loses the church, he loses that basis for those ethics. If you’re not-quite-sane, that’s not good.

The other side of the coin here is that if the student believes in life-after-death, there is much less stopping him from killing (let God sort ‘em out).

And you base this brilliant deduction upon the actions of .000001% (maniacal nutcase exceptions to the rule) of all people who call themselves Christian?
Thank God for atheists…the world shall be made a better place thanks to their “ethics.”
If I could only figure out how evolution accounted for ethics…doesn’t seem to fit as a criterion for natural selection.

p.s. for those who’ve miseed me, this is just a “drive by”

A mind demands reason and logic, try and force illogical thoughts into your head and the mind must begin to supress reason itself.

The proof is all over this site in the xian comments, not only do they all appear incapable of supporting anything through logic and reason, their answers appear childlike and they often run from questions.

It’s like their minds abandon them because of their betrayal.

You prove my post perfectly. How could a mind that has the ability to think and reason logically make this conclusion?

If I could only figure out how evolution accounted for ethics…doesn’t seem to fit as a criterion for natural selection.

Ethics or morals are learned through experience and desire. If you have temper tantrums and slap people to try and get your way, you will only end up isolated and no one will like you. So to get your way you experiment until you figure out what works best.

Causality, cause and f-ing effect. Now how am I not to conclude based on your horrible ability to figure anything out and your illogical proclamtions that you are not mentally deficient.

I mean seriously, it’s like you have never had to think before.

The base instinct of animals, including humans, is survival. Reproduction is a huge part as is defense and hunting.

As humans born with the ability to think and reason will still must accomplish our driving desire SURVIVAL. A child usually starts by trying to use force to achieve his goals and shortly finds that to be ineffective and to have consequences, mommy yells, time out, friends won’t play with him, etc.

That’s life in a nutshell. If it feels good or a benefit is gained from an action, action is repeated. Bad consequences action abandoned for more effective solution.