This is not an argument for or against atheism. This is a clear opinionated stance on whether Religion is vital for us to lead moral lives, whether that be making decisions or caring about others. The most basic moral rules set forth by the Holy Bible come from the well known Ten Commandments. These set the ground rules for how we should treat each other. But should we derive our morals from a book written centuries ago when we already have a set of morals instilled in us at birth? I believe we already have a set of morals before religion is even considered an option (and I call it an option because it truly is). I know I can figure out that murder is wrong, and that surfing through the Ten Commandments is not necessary.
One can choose whether or not to follow a certain religion or not. So does this also mean if one does not follow religion, ones does not have morals? Too many religious followers, that would seem to be the case, but then again, it depends on how "strict" they are with practicing their religion. It seems to me that we can just pick what we like from religion and slap on the title "my religion" and there you have a Muslim, Christian, Jew, or any other sect of religion. A good example of this is the current dilemma with ISIS. ISIS claims they follow the rules of Islam while followers of Islam say ISIS does not represent the core values taught through Islam. This means that those following the words of ISIS are picking certain ideals from Islam to justify their act by simply stating it is done for Allah. Would there be such a denial from Muslims if there was a group that conducted peaceful uprisings? Probably not, because we really want to associate religion with peaceful ideals, no matter how people interpret it. Compare this to Muslims who consider themselves as "moderates". Isn't it weird how we have a term called "moderates" when referring to followers of any religion? This means that there are some who go strictly by that religion and then there are those who do not. which ones are practicing the correct way? If there is not a correct way to practice a religion, then that means there's no reason to follow a religion because we pick what we like anyway. We pick what best suites our individual needs because we know, deep down, that religion does not satisfy those needs. Religion is group based, and most of us aren't willing to conform to a group. We would rather act on our individual interests rather than the group's.
My main challenge for those who suggest we must follow a religion to gain a moral high ground is; what do followers of religion gain over those who live their lives without religion? I think one can acquire and use his or her morals with no need to venture in the fantasy world of religion that indirectly rewards and punishes with an invisible hand those who do not follow said rules. It would be safe to say that because morals derived from religion align with a non-theist's perspective of morals, it would mean man created the idea of religion, hence moral values
