Oh idalily, all atheists who have been brought up in countries steeped in Christian values say that. Your dear husband got his "values" from his culture. And his culture got it from its religion.
Atheism has no—and logically can have no—inherent values. It is, by definition, a "values neutral" philosophy.
If there is no values Giver, Intelligent Designer, Cosmic Architect, then we are all merely products of blind and accidental nature, and are like any other animal, all of whose lives are dominated by "eat or be eaten". There is no moral component to nature. Morality transcends it. But if Nature is all there is, sans Nature's God...transcendence is impossible. Therefore morality is impossible.
You cannot adopt another's value system and then proclaim the other's philosophy—of which their value system is the unique product—null.
It is at best illogical.
My friend The Scientist claims that all our human morality can be rationally explained by our instincts to behave in ways that insure our survival and continuation as a species.
In other words, he advances the idea that people are just meat-suits used by DNA to replicate itself - and that which we call "morality" are really just those behaviors that foster human safety, survival and continuation...like honestly, friendliness, charity, kindness, cooperation, fairness, truth, honesty, etc. All of which grease the wheels of civilization and aid in the survival of individuals and cultures.
Sounds kind of convincing at first glance, doesn't it?
But, I have a question...
If DNA exerts such a powerful instinct as to minutely direct and define our individual and social behavior, determine the moral codes of millennia of human civilization, then why the hell is it so hard to get people to behave themselves?
The Gunslinger
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