Without the hope of heaven, what incentive is there to morality?
The idea that the hope of heaven is the only guarantee of moral behaviour is absurd. Highly ethical behaviour is found among peoples who do not believe in heaven – for example, many Chinese, or Japanese. Conversely, crime and corruption are rife in Christian societies. Nowhere was the hope of heaven stronger than in medieval Europe – yet few places on earth have seen injustice, oppression, and violence on such a scale, much of it in the name of Christianity. The strongest stimuli to moral behaviour in all human societies are parental and social discipline, either externally imposed, or internalized. Plus the direct rewards for good behaviour – love and social recognition. These factors ensure that we are often punished and rewarded for our deeds before we die – though chance and social injustice can often distort the outcome. Of course, religion can provide support for ethics, and Pantheism provides better support than religions which believe in heaven. Pantheism believes that we live
