Reply #53: Don't be restrictive

[reallygone]

I do not imply that you HAVE TO BE a believer to be kind or moral. I have certainly met kind people and people I would call highly moral that were professed/acknowledged atheists. That's fine with me. We get along well. We have mutual respect for each other and we share a similar moral code, that we apparently acquired thru different experiences.

To conclude, I would say two things: first, the original question was what does religion offer to "you", and I tried to relate what it gives to me; second, I would offer the view that our judgement of what is good, kind, tolerant, etc. is a reflection of religious morality that has been adopted by the society at large (I point to the continued existance of slavery and cannalbalism in the world as evidence that without religion diferent moral codes can be established).

Finally, many of the posts that reject the premise of a need for God, demonstrate a lack of tolerance for my own beliefs. I am thankful that my beliefs help me to be tolerant of those who do not agree with me.