Reply #61: While I agree that atheists can be moral [View All]

[Nikia]

I don't believe that they have no choice but to be moral. An atheist could simply not care about the person who he or she wrongs. This is especially true of people who feel that they have been wronged more than they deserve.
I work around a number of people who feel that they have been wronged more than they deserve. I think that for some of them, religious belief helps restrain them from feeling the need to fully repay the wrongs that they received. Jesus preached turn the other cheek and abandoning an eye for an eye thinking. Other religions preach that God will repay wrongs in one form or another. It provides some comfort to the oppressed.
Now whether or not God exists or not does not hinge on human belief. Whether or not God is, there are more factors in cause and effect that we can fathom. Good actions do not always lead to good in the greater scheme of things nor do bad actions bad. I agree that it is good to take personal repsonsibility for your actions regardless of your beliefs. If you believe though that everything has a clearly predictable chain of events associated with it, based upon one's actions, you will be disappointed and could easily revert to an "eye for an eye" philosophy.