Staunch atheists show higher morals than the proudly pious, from the pandemic to climate change

[wryter2000]

4. My personal theory of moral development

Is it starts to develop at a very early age when we learn not to hit and to share. After a while, that morphs into caring about other people. It could be partly genetic. I've seen preverbal infants respond to the crying of other infants with obvious concern on their faces.

After we've developed empathy, we attach "reasons" for it. That's when we learn rules that we then consider the basis of our morality. Of course, moral development continues, but I think moral behavior is only tentatively attached to religion or philosophy or other moral precepts.

I do not have data to prove this, of course, and I'll be damned if I'll go back to school to write another dissertation.