Thom_Fuleri wrote:
Cei wrote:
If we deny the existence of God, it's a way to avoid responsibility.
How is the idea that an omnipotent being with a plan that has control over your life and soul NOT avoiding responsibility? Praying for guidance and declaring something was "God's will" are both absolving responsibility.
This is the irony of altruism and atheism. A Christian does good works because they are told to, or because they want to get the "good" afterlife. This is not altruism, as there's a payoff (whether it's a real payoff or not is irrelevant). An atheist has no reason to do good works beyond the desire to do good works. So is it possible to be an altruistic believer?
The believer should ideally do more than that. Not working and just praying for money, for example, is obviously avoiding responsibility as well, yes. You should do whatever you can, besides just trusting in God.
Of course it is possible. That's kind of a stupid question, IMO. Many times I find myself having trouble remembering to do things with God in mind, instead of just helping people first and considering my intentions later. Besides, does doing something because you are told to mean you did not act altruistically? If someone tells you to donate money to a charity, will it not be altruistic for you to do so, even if that person has at that point no way of knowing whether you did or not? On top of that, I consider religion to be not as much a reason to do good works, as a guide on what is good. If someone is totally selfish, will the threat of Hell really deter them? Or will they just convince themselves not to believe in it?