How Good a Moral Guide Is The Christian Bible?
One finds that, through living life, day-to-day morality is not so difficult to define. It is simply a matter of kindness, respect, and reason: don't deliberately cause harm; be considerate of other humans. This is just rational; religion is not needed to arrive at such a judgment. However, most religions arrive at their moral judgments on a different, authoritarian basis.
God-Based Morality
All human behavior Christians consider to be "good" is measured against the attributed "righteousness" of God, not against other moral or ethical principles of humanity. The word "moral" (or ethical) does not even appear in the bible. The first place that "doing right" is used in the Bible appears to occur when Abraham questions the morality of God. Abraham got God to change his mind and agree not to slaughter the innocent people living in Sodom (Gen. 18:25). Unfortunately, God later went ahead and murdered all the inhabitants anyway, including babies. It would seem Abraham was more moral than God.
One must look long and hard in the Bible to find examples that God was/is moral. How moral was it for God to allow Satan to impose such suffering on Job? The Bible is replete with examples of God's direct responsibility for the death and torture of innocent people. Numbers 31 recounts the story of the extermination of the Midianites. God told Moses to avenge the Israelites on the Midianites, and every male Midianite was killed. Later, Moses directed that every male child and all non-virgin females be slain too. Only female virgins were spared.
The majority of Christians and followers of other religions believe the basis for morality must be something absolute and outside humanity, asking, "Why be good if there is no punishment, no reward, and no entity to enforce the rules?" Since human nature is taught by Christians' sacred text to be intrinsically corrupt, Christians conclude that only destruction and evil will result without God's absolute laws. Avoidance of eternal punishment then becomes the moral imperative. In terms of achieving positive contributions for the good of society, avoidance and fear of punishment are very poor substitutes for actively seeking to be a better member of humanity.
Human-Based Morality
The humanistic answer to morality lies in nature. Since we are a part of nature and can observe nothing beyond nature, it is necessary to assign value to actions in the context of nature itself. We do this every day when we elect to value behavior that promotes the common good. Such morality has originated from within humanity.
Christians hold that the opportunity to relate to human suffering is the reason why Jesus became human, but how can Jesus' temporary earthly sufferings make up for the sufferings of the entire human race? (Moreover, if God in his omniscience knows what all individuals will do, why would such a sacrifice be necessary?) Many individuals have suffered a good deal more than can possibly occur through the (self-imposed) pain of a few hours on a cross. What about the agony of those who have been burned and/or otherwise tortured for days, weeks, and months on end? Just because Jesus was allegedly a higher power does not make his physical suffering any more intense than anyone else's. Jesus was sustained by the thought that he was saving the world. And remember, on the night of Jesus' crucifixion, he was in paradise.
The Bible
The Bible is filled with specific commandments for living. However, much of the practice of such commandments or laws presented therein cannot be logically defended. For example, consider the book of Numbers and the barbarism it teaches: in Numbers 15:32-36, a man is stoned to death because he violates the 4th Commandment ("Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy") by gathering sticks on the Sabbath. Where is the moral outcry and denunciations by Christians about this passage? Why are these verses still included in the Bible? Those who believe the Bible to be inerrant have to be glad that God and the Bible do not have to be logical or sensible.
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