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you cannot legislate morals


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I wonder, those who say that you cannot legislate morals, are they saying we should not have no laws against that which is a moral issue? Is it they feel there should be no laws at all?


I can only speak for myself. You can not legislate morals; but you can legislate what are acceptable behaviors and the community (Town, City, County or State) does have the right to do so. I believe most who say this mean that you can not change a person's heart with legislation, which is totally true. Further, I believe most who would say that believe that there should be laws that govern how people interact with one another and how they treat others and property.
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Although usually used by libertarians, it could have a completely different meaning -

You can not legistlate morals, because there is one lawgiver - GOD, and he has already told us what is right and wrong in his bible.

In all actuality, that is the correct meaning, because in common law, the idea wasn't they "created" (judicial) law but
they discovered law that God had given. The original common law under Alfred the Great quoted large portions of the bible
as part of it, and it developed from there.

Edited by MaxKennedy
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These have all been interesting responses. The people who seem to use this argument ("you can't legislate morality") most often are liberals who are OBjecting to conservatives taking stands on moral issues. The prOBlem is not that someone is trying to legislate morality; everyone in politics is trying to legislate morality (to decide what is "right" and what is "wrong," and making laws accordingly). The question is not whether we can legislate morality, but whose morality should be legislated.

For example, liberals, conservatives, and third-party people alike would all agree that it is morally wrong to murder, and that murder should be illegal, and should carry a penalty of some sort. So, they all are legislating morality, whether they want to admit it or not. The finger pointing comes when there is disagreement over application. Liberals tell conservatives that the death penalty is immoral, yet scream, "You can't legislate morality!" when it comes to abortion. And, of course, the wide-eyed, couch potato, emotionally-driven, non-thinking American public swallows this incredibly inconsistent and hypocritical propaganda hook, line, and sinker.

Max mentioned libertarians...but I think they'd even have to admit that they are in favor of legislating morality, and that society would quickly turn to anarchy and/or tyranny if moral laws were not made. Again, the differences between the parties lie along which/whose morals should be legislated, how far the laws should go in defining and enforcing certain moral actions, and how morality should be applied in different contexts. But no one is truly against legislating morality.

Edited by Annie
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My feeling toward this is that you should not legislate morality outside what directly affects or infringes upon the rights of others. For example, murder, stealing and trespassing are against the law and could be considered moral issues. However, when breaking these laws you infringe upon another person's right to life, liberty and property. The government is to protect those rights. However, there are many other moral issues that are private which should be left up to the individual, regardless of how others feel about it.

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Government must legislate morality or you will have a breakdown of society. Read Romans 13. God's purpose for government is to punish evil doers and reward those that do right. A good moral code is the foundation of every good government. Societies will crumble and have crumbled when sin is allowed to have free course.

Parents must also legislate morality within the family otherwise you will have a household of vile, wicked people. Read Proverbs. Solomon was giving his son a moral code to live by. Every godly family has set up a moral code that is based upon the word of God. Violating that moral code requires punishment (that is why we spank our children). Abiding by the moral code causes the household to have peace and harmony. The reason why we have so many divorces is because most people think that they can just do their own thing without any consequences.

Those that say that you can't legislate morality are spiritually blind (and fools as far as I am concerned). There are activities that will never be permitted to occur in our household! There are things that we will never have in our household! There are things that our children will never be allowed to do! That my friend is legislating morality and it is the only way to be a godly parent. Don't swallow the lies of the devil, it will only cause you heartache and sorrow.

Edited by brosmith
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The Word of God was given to us so we would know how to establish laws. No man is an island and all sin ripples forth effecting others.

There are those who try and proclaim homosexuality is a "personal issue". When homosexuals kept their abominable sexual perversion behind closed doors it was about as "personal" as it could get. Once homosexuals began wanting their sin to be approved, made public and to have their perversion specially protected, this abomination began great effecting society at large. Now we have homosexuals advocating for the restructuring of 6,000 years of society in order to placate their perversion. Homosexuality has greatly effected society at large by spreading AIDs, by reducing the number of folks eligible to give blood, creating dangers situations for health care workers, corrupting churches, seminaries, etc.

God is perfect and His Word is perfect and shall stand forever regardless of what sinful people might believe. "The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the Word of our God shall stand forever." Psalm 40:8

More important than questioning whether morality can be legislated or if "moral laws" are appropriate, is the question of why any professing Christian would stand against God in this area.

Scripture is abundantly clear that homosexuality is a sin that God calls an abomination. In the nearly 2,000 year history of Christianity this was clearly understood and upheld. Why is it today that so many professing Christians have decided God didn't know what He was talking about? Many professing Christians today proclaim homosexuality is "just a choice", there is really nothing wrong with homosexuality, homosexuals should be allowed to "marry".

Is it any wonder we have such unbiblical positions held by professing Christians when so many seminaries and churches have abandoned the Word of God and accepted homosexuals as professors, pastors/priests, bishops and such? Such are not called of God yet they proclaim to serve God even as they lead folks away from Him.

No holding to biblical morality in many churches, no holding to biblical morality among many professing Christians. These churches, professing Christians and their other institutions are reaping what they have sown: wickedness, and they don't want laws against such.

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The Word of God was given to us so we would know how to establish laws. No man is an island and all sin ripples forth effecting others.

There are those who try and proclaim homosexuality is a "personal issue". When homosexuals kept their abominable sexual perversion behind closed doors it was about as "personal" as it could get. Once homosexuals began wanting their sin to be approved, made public and to have their perversion specially protected, this abomination began great effecting society at large. Now we have homosexuals advocating for the restructuring of 6,000 years of society in order to placate their perversion. Homosexuality has greatly effected society at large by spreading AIDs, by reducing the number of folks eligible to give blood, creating dangers situations for health care workers, corrupting churches, seminaries, etc.

God is perfect and His Word is perfect and shall stand forever regardless of what sinful people might believe. "The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the Word of our God shall stand forever." Psalm 40:8

More important than questioning whether morality can be legislated or if "moral laws" are appropriate, is the question of why any professing Christian would stand against God in this area.

Scripture is abundantly clear that homosexuality is a sin that God calls an abomination. In the nearly 2,000 year history of Christianity this was clearly understood and upheld. Why is it today that so many professing Christians have decided God didn't know what He was talking about? Many professing Christians today proclaim homosexuality is "just a choice", there is really nothing wrong with homosexuality, homosexuals should be allowed to "marry".

Is it any wonder we have such unbiblical positions held by professing Christians when so many seminaries and churches have abandoned the Word of God and accepted homosexuals as professors, pastors/priests, bishops and such? Such are not called of God yet they proclaim to serve God even as they lead folks away from Him.

No holding to biblical morality in many churches, no holding to biblical morality among many professing Christians. These churches, professing Christians and their other institutions are reaping what they have sown: wickedness, and they don't want laws against such.


:amen: AND :amen:
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I think people should start dusting off their Bibles and get a Biblical worldview. We have very quickly forgotten why Soddom and Gomorrah was annilated. Anyways, I am just going to call the statement "you cannot legislate morals" what it is. It is Secular Humanism.


:amen:

It's been said this is the most biblically illiterate generation in America's history. It's no wonder folks don't know what God really says and wants.

Surveys indicate about half of all professing Christians either never or rarely ever read their Bible. Another sizable percentage only read some occasionally. By the time we get to those who actually read their Bible daily the percentage is extremely small.

This is one of the reasons it's so easy for professing Christians to be led astray by pastors in churches where the whole Word of God isn't taught and preached or where outright false teachings are put forth and sins accepted.
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I think there is many good points made to this issue.

Sometimes I feel that those who proclaim you cannot legislate morals are against all laws and authority, and they want to be their own authority.

I recall one libertarian said, there should be no law against abortion, against prostitution, homosexuality, gambling, we should not try to legislate morals.

Why should not God's laws be our laws? I feel the only ones who oppose this are those who are lost.

Pr 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Pr 14:9 Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour.

Ps 92:4 For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands.
Ps 92:5 O LORD, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.
Ps 92:6 A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this.
Ps 92:7 ¶ When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever:
Ps 92:8 But thou, LORD, art most high for evermore.
Ps 92:9 For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.

Yet the fools will always stand against God's ways. Those of today that stand against His ways, if they had lived in the days of Jesus they would have been cheering on the murder of Jesus on the cross.


Have you ever thought this, perhaps those who proclaim you cannot legislate morals do not consider murder and stealing moral issues?

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Perhaps "moral issue" is the wrong thing to call it. Maybe it should be called a private issue or a personal moral issue. Murder should be legislated because it directly affects a person's right to life. However, there are plenty of private issues that do not affect others that should be left to the individual. The individual can make decisions that violate God's law, but that is between them and God. If the only reason someone isn't committing adultery is because it's illegal than that doesn't change their heart. Private things are private and things that affect life, liberty and property are the only moral issues that should be legislated. Otherwise, it is between a person and God.

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Perhaps "moral issue" is the wrong thing to call it. Maybe it should be called a private issue or a personal moral issue. Murder should be legislated because it directly affects a person's right to life. However, there are plenty of private issues that do not affect others that should be left to the individual. The individual can make decisions that violate God's law, but that is between them and God. If the only reason someone isn't committing adultery is because it's illegal than that doesn't change their heart. Private things are private and things that affect life, liberty and property are the only moral issues that should be legislated. Otherwise, it is between a person and God.


What are "private moral issues"? Can you provide a list so we know what you are speaking of?
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