You: I would say that your "divine" morality is one of convenience as well. Throughout history the enemies of Christians have been found to be wanting in one way or another. Books and thoughts that speak heresy are said to be evil, enemies of the church destroyed and persecuted.

Aaron: Such acts seem to you to be instances of morality by convenience only because they support a position that you disapprove of.

You: Not true. The morality of organized religions seems to be based on convenience because it changes with the times. Scientists were condemned to retract their words — or worse — because they were "morally wrong," but when their thoughts were no longer a danger to the church, they were no longer considered "evil." Not that they were usually alive to benefit from the change in their status.

Aaron: You are talking about Catholics and the persecution of religious heretics. I for one am not a Catholic.

You: I'm talking about a good number of Christian sects. The protestants persecuted the Catholics, and the puritans, and non-Christians just as the Catholics did. It seems to me that every religious group considers dissenters to be evil, and this does not make any sense if they are all hearing the word of the same God.

Aaron: You are speaking of ancient history and of corrupt men who used the mantle of the priesthood as a means to further their own ends.

You: Such things still go on. In recent years the debate between creation and evolution has developed along these lines, with some Christians claiming that evolution must be wrong and its supporters silenced because of the un-Biblical nature of the theory.

Aaron: In time either science with come to accept that evolution is wrong or Christians will be shown enough evidence to change their views. In either case, I don't see how Christians can be blamed.

You: It seems to me that the blame should not fall on them but on your God. God certainly known whether evolution takes place or not, and if he — as supreme example of good — is allowing his followers to believe that evolutionists are evil even though they are not, then I must question his morality.

Aaron: Well, perhaps evolution is false. It is just a theory, in any case.

You: Even if it turned out to be false, that would not erase the fact that people with scientific beliefs that we now take for granted were once thought to be evil and God didn't do anything about it.

Aaron: Of course God did something about it, he changed our views.

You: That's precisely my point, if good and evil are going to change over time then, by your argument, God is going to change over time. That just doesn't make any sense. If God is perfect, then any change could only make him worse.

Aaron: I can see that you have no understanding of the nature of God.