By Michael McHugh 28 May 2019 Belfast Telegraph.
Anthropologist Dr Jonathan Lanman
The idea that non-believers in God lack morality has been disputed by new research, experts said.
A common supposition – that of the purposeless disbeliever, lacking anything to ascribe ultimate meaning to the universe – does not bear scrutiny, a university study said.
Most endorse objective moral values and human dignity at similar rates to the general populations in their countries, the report presented at the Vatican said.
One of the authors, University of Kent sociologist Dr Lois Lee, said: “These findings show once and for all that the public image of the atheist is a simplification at best, and a gross caricature at worst.
“Instead of relying on assumptions about what it means to be an atheist, we can now work with a real understanding of the many different world views that the atheist population includes.
“The implications for public and social policy are substantial, and this study also stands to impact on more everyday interactions in religiously diverse societies.”
The research is supported by a £2.3 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation and is led by the University of Kent in collaboration with Queen’s University Belfast, St Mary’s University Twickenham, and Coventry University.
The global Understanding Unbelief programme to advance the scientific understanding of atheism and non-religion will present the results from its research at the Vatican in Rome.
The multidisciplinary research programme maps the nature and diversity of “unbelief” across six countries: Brazil, China, Denmark, Japan, the UK and US.
PAT SAYS
There are a lot of church going people who are hypocrites.
There are a lot of atheists and agnostics who have very fine principles and morals.
For some, their morals come from religion.
For others their principles and morals come their innate human goodness.
All good people desire to do as much good as they can and as little harm as they can.
When we were in school we were told that there that there were two kinds of sorrow for sin – PERFECT CONTRITION and IMPERFECT CONTRITION.
Perfect contrition was that you were sorry for your sins becausenthey hurt God.
Imperfect contrition was that you were sorry for you were sorry for your sins because you were afraid you would go to hell.
Religion is not the origin of morality.
Morality is the innate conscience of man that helps him to know whst is right and what is wrong.
My Jack Russell, Buzz, looks guilty when he does something wrong.
BISHOP PAT BUCKLEY 
32 replies on “STUDY DISPUTES THE VIEW THAT ATHEISTS LACK MORALS.”
I’m just after logging on Pat… I am sorry to have missed the comments of this morning.
I much prefer to use the term Higher Power when referring to the deity. It is gender neutral and does not have any of the connotations that are often used when referring to the supreme being. Interesting article though I don’t agree to everything in it.
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COMMENTS
DELETED TODAY’S COMMENTS BY MISTAKE 😭
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Morality predates deistic belief as an evolutionary derived strategy of consensus for survival. Its psychological core imprint is experientially shaped in childhood. Deistic belief, as formalised in religious practices, often thinks of moral behaviour as a universally prescribed objective entity mandated by an immutable Creator .
I much prefer the “Good without God” concept of Humanism.
MMM
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MMM, I like what you say. For me a a Christian Good = God.
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At 12:16 p.m.
Are you using the word ‘deistic’ in its technical sense? Or perhaps you consider it to be a synonym for ‘theistic?’ Deism refers to a theology of God of a particular historical period, from the late 17th Century characterised by the assumption that once God had created the world, God withdrew and left it to its own devices.
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12.16: MMM…..And I prefer the God of love, mercy and goodness concept as incarnated in Jesus Christ and exemplified by many in a living Christianity!!
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Anon@ 12.33: and I certainly have respect for your choices. I think the Christ as described in the Gospels personified the best of human morality. It’s just a shame so many ignore his example.
MMM
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12.05: MMM – I’m sure you also include yourself in the “shame” you feel that so many ignore the reality and life of Christ and his personification of the best of human morality, though I would say Divine morality!! (The highest ideal which of course Christ lived!).
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Yes, indeed. Ignore his example. Especially the instutional l Roman Catholic Church. The Whore.
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12.26: Rather a self evident conclusion! If someone professes Christianity they have to be in relationship with Christ and therefore imbibe the spirit of God. Good Christians place their focus on God at all times and seek the perfect life as lived by Christ.
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12.26: Rather a self evident conclusion! If someone professes Christianity they have to be in relationship with Christ and therefore imbibe the spirit of God. Good Christians place their focus on God at all times and seek the perfect life as lived by Christ.
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Pat when is the Oscott information coming ?
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3.41. You really are holding a grudge. You’re becoming more hysterical in screaming for Oscott stuff. Perhaps it’s like Pat’s Scottish Day and he knows nothing.
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Oscott is a place of nightmares! It has nothing to do with the Christian life let alone any form of priesthood, I spoke to a priest who was trained there, he belived the bread was the body of Christ and the wine was the blood, when I tried to explain about Catholic belief in ‘whole and entire in either species’ he didn’t have a clue, said he wasn’t sure what I meant, passed all his exams though.
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9.17pm How long has he been ordained?
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Pat just reposting this:
Pat Mullaney has me destroyed the wee hur.
Thanks
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4 15: This is the kind of comment that devalues your blog Pat. These silly, prepubescent, idiotic thicks behaving like utter fools. Why do you allow such nonsense?
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An update on the continuing Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry makes harrowing reading, Bp Pat.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-48458480
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It does and also testifies to the reality that the morals of religious people are no different from anyone else’s – in fact the report once again identifies that the sisters’ misplaced obedience contributed to the problem.
Also as is usual the sisters who have testified to the enquiry have mostly denied witnessing anything, which the report attributes to an inability to face the reality.
These are all themes played out on this blog daily, in continual denial and distraction to some imagined good sisters.
I would reasonably expect Christians’ morals to be better than those in the surrounding world, but once again this far from isolated example shows Christians’ made worse – by Christianity.
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Just a question, what safegaurding training and procedures does the oratory have?
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12.26: Rather a self evident conclusion! If someone professes Christianity they have to be in relationship with Christ and therefore imbibe the spirit of God. Good Christians place their focus on God at all times and seek the perfect life as lived by Christ.
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Whoever said that atheists lack morality?
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Everybody says it.
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Really?
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Today’s post is a straw man. We are moral because we are human. Anyone who has finished First Divinity Moral Theology knows that. The real question is, since that is the case: what role or function do religions play in the moral adventure? The role of religion is to provide role models for its members and, in the case of theistic religions, i.e. all of the major world religions apart from Buddhism, to arrange the stage on which the moral project takes place. In other words, to assert that it is not human beings who are the centre of the universe, but rather, God.
Jesus’ teaching on love of enemies is a case in point: “But I say to you, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Luke 6: 27-28. Would it be possible for human beings to promote this moral principle by the use of reason alone? Perhaps.
Secondly, it’s curious but not a co-incidence, that the most evil regimes of the 20th Century: Hitler’s Nazism, Stalin’s and Mao Zedong’s communism were all atheistic to the core. Could they have got it so wrong if they had not displaced God with man?
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Illogical ‘logical fallacy’.Today’s post could not be a strawman, since there was no previous, alternative argument.
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Oh, dear. Such shallow historical ‘analysis’. These regimes were more (much more) than atheistic; they were downright evil.
You have implicitly equated atheism with moral barbarity.
(Have you studied theistic history’s instigation and prosecution of the Crusades, etc. ?)
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10.51 M. Carta – There’s nothing implicit about the connection between these regimes and atheism. I stated categorically they were atheistic. I don’t believe in guilt by association. At the beginning of the post I rejected the assumption that atheism is immoral and religion is moral. Logic is not your forte. Neither is truth. And, on the basis of the vulgarities and obscenities stemming from your mind almost on a daily basis here, at least for the length of time that I’ve been a reader, neither is charity.
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11:31
You didn’t get beyond ‘First Divinity Moral Theology’, then?😅
I absolutely hate to show people up, but needs must.😆
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Pathetic
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Thauld pad never (almost) rejects thauld finger hi. What will they study next. Is a cup of tea a mixture or a solution Mrs Doyle but. People are people with the same basic potentially. It is us lot who put words or concepts on reality. Just as well God doesn’t depend on us to exist Would ya like a biscuit father a go on hi
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Good Nite to ye Fly hi.
We’re all Gods children Fly hi.
God has no favorites.
Butt some think themselves better than udders and butter wouldn’t melt in their mouths cos they are holy and a cut above in a club for holy huddlers. They’d take Mrs Doyle’s biscuit any day.
Nite hi Fly.
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