Can we be good without God?

There are more and more atheists today. A poll in 2012 conducted across 51 countries shows that 13% of the respondents think of themselves as convinced atheists. Compared with the same poll conducted in 2005, atheism is on the rise by almost 10%.  If this trend continues, what are the implications for social order and human interaction?

At a simple level an atheist does not believe there is a transcendental, supernatural force overlooking all aspects of life, nor in life after death. In this case, what regulates personal behaviour? What prevents us from lying, cheating, stealing, raping and murdering? Is the fear of legal consequences sufficient ? Firstly one has to be policed, caught, accused and tried. Is social opprobrium a deterrent? Maybe, but it implies that there is an existing universal standard of acceptable behaviour which is independent of individual religious affiliations.

Morality is hardwired into us and there are two theses supporting this.

The first is tradition and culture. Humans, more than any other species survive by the accumulated experience of previous generations. All traditions teach us to be decent, moral, empathetic and have pity on the less fortunate. While much of this is in the context of a faith, it does not necessarily have to be so. André Comte-Sponville  describes a mind experiment in “The Little Book of Atheist Spirituality”:

Imagine what would happen if you lost your faith……..what would you tell your ́adolescent children at the dinner table?….It might go something like this: “Children, I’ve undergone an astonishing metamorphosis. I don’t believe in God anymore! So I wanted to let you know, with the utmost solemnity, that all the values I’ve tried so hard to inculcate in you throughout your childhood and adolescence should henceforth be considered as sheer rubbish.”

….this position is highly unlikely. Instead you would say…..

“I have something  important to tell you. I’ve lost my faith; I no longer believe in God! Of course this doesn’t in the least affect the values I’ve always tried to inculcate in you; I’m counting on you to keep respecting them”

Parampara is a fascinating Sanskrit word. It means succession, convention, tradition, continuation. It is the  values I inherited and belongs to me by reason of my birth. Statements, information, beliefs, legends, customs, behaviour and ethics that have been handed down by generation upon generation of my ancestors, by word of mouth and by practice.

Regardless of geography, time or religion, these traditions essentially teach us to be good humans. Karen Armstrong talks about the Golden Rule being the single common thread across all religions. We are to treat others as we would wish to be treated ourselves.

This leads to the important question: If  there is no anchor of religion or a higher being, what might this transmission be? Would the values always be “good”? Or would they teach us to  be selfish, cruel, dishonest?

In an ethical context, what do non-believers believe in? Do they have a moral compass? What values do they live by? What do they leave behind?

The explanation is from evolutionary biology or more accurately sociobiology.  Richard Dawkins in his bestselling book The God Delusion explores faith and morality and examines whether our morality has a Darwinian origin.

In Darwinian theory, being moral is a survival strategy. Since the dawn of history humans have never lived all alone – we have always been in groups, tribes, clans, villages, communities; and interdependence is essential for survival. We are all selfish to a degree, but have realised that our chances of survival increase if instead of fighting each other we cooperate. This cooperation requires some individual sacrifice and it is this sacrifice that is precisely the source of our morality.

Natural selection favours individuals with the moral instinct because those without it had been unable to live in a group. Those with it could, and the group was stronger for it.

Thus the Golden Rule is common to all humans and universal to all societies. It has been co opted by and adapted to all religions because we just need it to survive as a species.

To answer the original question, yes we can still be good without God. After all society is the origin of religion and ethics the essence of our survival.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/reciproc.htm

http://www.karlbranting.net/papers/DarwinGoldenRule.pdf

https://www.ted.com/talks/robert_wright_the_evolution_of_compassion?language=en

http://www.askwhy.co.uk/truth/c20evolethic0.php