Had a conversation with a Christian that I work with about general morality. When I finally told her I was an atheist it seems I genuinely rocked her world. She said to me essentially that she could not believe that I am such a good person without God. She came up to me later to tell me that I truly made her re-evaluate some of her beliefs about faith. So she learned that morality is separate from a belief in God, and I learned that if you talk to people honestly without confrontation that you can bring new understanding.

Knowing right from wrong really isn't that hard. Unless you're a sociopath, or some other kind psychotic.

over 90 % of convicted criminals hold so called religious beliefs, nuff said

Morality predates any gods. Secular Humanism offers the best explanation to me. Although Lord of the Flies suggests that purely social contracts are short lived where survival and ambition are present, I believe long term morality is a key tenet of civilization and a deity is not necessary to establish a suitable moral code.

I LOVE getting this question. It's soooo easy to bury them with examples of horrific "morality" in the bible - from slavery to a "compassionate" god who sends his own creations to a fiery eternal hell. The conversation usually ends up with their heads about to explode lololol...

Well, it is pretty obvious that the Golden Rule, recognized across many eons & cultures in one form or another, is a pretty good idea unless you want to live in a cave......

Tons of stuff on “#morality” around here… I’m afraid I’d begin boring folks going into that again ..though a worthwhile question ~

Compassion is the word. When I think of doing something that I know the other will not like because I would not like it in his/her place I won't do it. If I would, I would feel bad.
I guess that is morality. Being able to know wrong from right. I guess "the apple" was between the fruit that I once purchased.

Morality is a social concept that started when people came together to form communities. Accepted rules of conduct had to be established for security and peaceful survival. Morals were a well-accepted norm long before deities were created and religion took over the teachings.

I like to bring up slavery. If the person asking the question thinks slavery is immoral, I can point out immediately they don't get their morality from god either.

Slavery was not merely condoned by the Bible, but positively sanctioned. The rules of slave ownership were provided in significant detail.

"How do you know slavery is immoral when God so plainly disagrees?"

Your right is your right, and your wrong is your wrong. Belief in one god brings charitable actions less often than it brings strife and hate. What is really important is that you find your own ethical center and stand by it until new information proves you wrong.

Go back and read the posts on this topic. It has been repeated multiple times.

I found mine in a box of cracker jacks

I have never been asked that question. I have gotten the what happens when you die a lot and the occasional what happened to make you angry at god stuff but never anything about morality.

By coming off of autopilot and recognizing what it means to be a good person. Service, kindness, compassion, critical thinking, selflessness.

Many times during discussions with Christians, when I mention that I don’t believe in Hell, they react with something like: “If there’s no Hell, then what keeps you from doing bad things”. Have some of these folks replaced the built-in moral mechanisms with an externally imposed consequences based “what’s in it for me” ethics system? They seem puzzled by this and yet they reserve for themselves a get-out-of-jail-free card, the deathbed conversion and repentance. Religion can be incapacitating.

Why do they ask?

And as for me I like the veil of ignorance as a source for morality although you really don’t have to think too hard to tell if something is moral or not.

Sorry for the common post but is there a way to search for post? I see it hashtags things do I just click the hashtags?

Just from my own limited understanding.

the question is , where do so called Christians get their morality from?