Can I be a good person without God?

Eli: Your kindest friend might not believe in God. What would faith add?

Eli: Fair. Even a Christian ethics dictionary says morality and religion are distinct.

Eli: One definition: try to act on the best reasons, giving equal consideration to everyone affected.

Eli: Some say goodness needs an absolute lawgiver; others say morals shift across time and place.

Eli: Studies on religion and crime are mixed, so I won't claim believers are better.

Eli: Christians say Jesus offers grace: a gift you can't earn, not a grade.

Eli: Here's how the letter to the Ephesians puts it.

Eli: for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, that no one would boast.

Eli: Read one of the Gospels, the New Testament books about Jesus, and see for yourself.

Eli: A local church can connect you with a real person.