Ideas from '17: Of Superstition' by Francis Bacon [1625], by Theme Structure

[found in 'Essays' by Bacon,Francis [Everyman 1965,-]].

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28. God / A. Divine Nature / 6. Divine Morality / b. Euthyphro question
Even without religion, there are many guides to morality
                        Full Idea: Atheism leaves a man to sense, to philosophy, to natural piety, to laws, to reputation; all which may be guides to an outward moral virtue, though religion were not.
                        From: Francis Bacon (17: Of Superstition [1625], p.52)
                        A reaction: One might add to Bacon's list 'contracts', or 'rational consistency', or 'self-evident human excellence', or 'natural sympathy'. This is a striking idea, which clearly made churchmen uneasy when atheism began to spread.