Religion did not tear the world apart. Statism did (well, statism is in a way the religion of worshiping the State as God)! States did incredible evil in the name of nationalism and statism, sometimes in the past they even took religions under the hood. But never did religions or philosophies do as much as people in power through the institution of The State. I will include christian-ism as I call it into it, because as a devout follower of Christ I fully acknowledge that in the name of a christian God and religion many bad things were done, but all of those were done solely through the state monopoly of coercion and through people, not God. Those people will probably be condemned for following the false god of the State.
While I will say that without God objective moral values cannot exist, it does not mean that atheists can’t be moral, but the fact that they are shows that there must be a moral law giver (Creator God). Consult William Lane Craig on more of that. 😉
As for the Christian doctrines of non-aggression principle and love, they can only be founded from a omnipotent God who Himself is different from everything else we know of (holy) who is at the same time perfectly just and perfectly loving. Thus He created beings who are free to choose. They are free to choose good or evil. And whatever they choose, He will still pursue them to see the truth and act in accordance to His will because He is Love. Therefore Christians ought not to rule another, rather they should serve each other and the rest. They ought not use force upon another. Personally I think we should be pacifists, but I will not go to the wall for that. Dietrich Bonhoeffer struggled with that question as well…
I do not believe that God of the Bible could ever be behind the rest of the religions, no matter how nice they look, because at the end of the day all in their foundation, excepting Christianity, allow for coercion to prove the point. They all, except Jesus, demand fully obeying the law should they want to inherit everlasting life or other dependencies. They all require works for salvation. Except for Christ. He is the single only Deity, who asks only to trust that He is enough, that freedom of a person to choose and believe, is what it takes. True, though, that after that come works, but the works are showing the result of salvation, they are not needed for salvation. Nor do works prove moral sufficiency of any person (or their goodness) for deserving relationship with God. One cannot deserve love. Love (from God or a person for that matter) can only be gifted unto you and you can either accept it or deny it.
Hence One can either see the truth and recognize the Creator God behind it and find Jesus at the end of the road, or you fall short.
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
– Rom 3,23For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
– Rom 1,18-23…
Just a quick thing on the 10 commandments: they are intended to show people that they cannot be perfect and can’t ever obey the law without making the law as a false deity. They are intended to make people humble themselves and admit that they cannot be perfect, that they cannot be a godlike person. Furthermore Jesus clearly shows that if one puts their eyes on God, His love will make him want to love the rest of mankind, ergo fulfilling the law without having the law in front of him. St. Paul even suggests that the Decalogue was given so that we might know our sin and not so that we might enforce it.
But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
– Gal 3,23-24If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.
– John 15,10-17Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
– 2 Cor 1,1-3Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God.
– Rom 7,4
Again this all comes down to the fact that Christianity, in contrast to the rest, in fact proposes liberty among all Mankind and does not constitute the right of any man to rule another.
Blessings!
More resources on the topic:
Paul and the Law
Do Old Testament Laws Apply Today
Why Liberty, why Christ?
Ravi Zacharias on evolution of morality by Richard Dawkins.
William Lane Craig: Is There an Explanation for Moral Obligations on Atheism?
Christianity: Origin, Meaning, Morality, and Destiny
Government vs God
Libertarian Christians
libertarianchristians.com
Truth is Absolute – Dr. Ravi Zacharias
The Complete and Undeniable Truth – Larken Rose
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