Religiosity, Social Dysfunction Linked in Pew Study
 

Self Explanatory :) Religiosity, Social Dysfunction Linked in Pew Study | New Republic

A well done study with unsurprising results.

It's possible that some of the answers given to the question are actual descriptions of a person's moral motivations. At one time I was teaching lots of Middle Eastern male students from countries with legal systems closely allied to divine law. They consistently claimed that if God did not threaten them with punishment they would not be moral. I took that to be an honest statement about their personal motivations. In other words, the question may not be a strictly philosophical question but a question about the kinds of motivations which different societies produce.

You bring up an interesting construct. Some people are 'not moral' (unless threatened to be so) where as some are moral without any threat. George Thorogood & The Destroyers - Who Do You Love? - YouTube More importantly who do you want to walk among, given choice?

It would depend. If law enforcement is really strong, a Muslim society is very good from a 'moral' point of view. But if you want people to be morally mature and independent it's very counterproductive.

I'll bet for most of human history religion and government were not thought of as separate or even separable.

Agreed and that is still the case for huge swaths of the world's population. I'd go as far as to say that it is the natural course of all religion to express itself as political power. The only reason it doesn't is if there are accidental or deliberate obstacles to the growth and maturation of the religion.

Sounds about right, except for the matter of perspective. What I mean is that within the system, one would view political and religious power as inseparable, merely aspects of the same relationship. Thus, the theocracy expressed by Iran or Israel or Rome (and the wishful thinking of our own Christian fundamentalists) are different manifestations of this belief.

I completely agree with your last sentence. Clear and succinct.

If only there had been an enlightenment :(