There Both IS And IS NOT Absolute Truth

I recently have been speaking with people about morality and how it is defined. I am largely an ethical subjectivist with traces of nihilism in my belief system, though not clouded by the notion that everything is without purpose. I know there's a term for that. I don't know what it is. Sue me.

TERMS

So to really get at the heart of what my thoughts are you need to understand some very basic verbiage or constructs. It's not necessarily the "definition" by English standards that I am concerned about, but the "concept" that underlies that definition so don't get too hung up on the words I'm choosing but more on the idea behind them. Words change based on linguistics but the concept can remain the same.

Objective - Independent of the mind or free of the mind. Essentially it means you don't have to apply any personal reference. This is simply what is observed or found from testing

Subjective - Dependent upon other factors besides an intrinsic nature. Subjective means essentially that the object relies heavily on things beyond itself to define itself.

Morality - This is a basic idea that something is either "good" or "bad" as applied to several fields. It can apply to the best interest of a person, group, ideal, or anything really. (More on this later)

Absolute - Absolute means that something cannot change. It will continually remain however it is regardless of external factors.

Eternal Force - This is my polite way of acknowledging deities. While I believe in Jesus and God, my thoughts regarding this apply unilaterally and thus I'll replace the words "God" or "Jesus" with "Eternal Force" which will represent an eternal force that governs the universe and has values that are absolute as defined above.

Belief - The concept that you have a thought or feeling and you, by way of agreeing to your own, either silently, mentally, or vocally argue that all others are incorrect. (ie. if you believe even that all beliefs are correct then you would say that those who only think there is one right belief are wrong, etc.)

Community - The grouping of people with which you currently have awareness. If you are aware of the people, even if you choose to ignore, they belong to the community.

Power - The ability/inability to further an agenda

Law - Rules given to groups that may or may not be independent of morality

Justice - The concept of weighing moralities against one another in order to "justify" or make a concession for one or the other.

Bad - Painful or Damaging (whether physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, or otherwise)

Good - Pleasing or Restorative (whether physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, or otherwise)

WHAT IS MORALITY?
Here is where I will argue what morality is. I don't suggest you continue reading this if you are a Christian with a weak faith that isn't subject to challenge yet. The thoughts I have largely fly in the face of a lot of traditional beliefs. I by no means mean that to insult you, but the statements I will be making may get you thinking in a way that is counter-biblical, which is not the intent. I fully believe the Bible and this is simply my way of understanding it.

My belief largely corresponds with different escalating levels of community. Here are what I have so far (meaning I am willing to adjust):

1. Self
2. Small Social Circle (Family/Friends/Etc.)
3. Large Social Circle (Friends of Friends/Extended Family/Etc.)
4. Establishment (City/Town/Village/Etc.)
5. State (Where applicable)
6. Region (Where applicable)
7. Nation/Country
8. Allied Nations/Countries (Where applicable)
9. Hemisphere (Where applicable)
10. World 
11. Beyond World (Theoretical contingent upon other intelligent life)
12. Universal
13. Eternal Force (If consented to)

BASIC CONCEPTS:
Everything in life that we can know is subjective. Objectivity being free of the mind or without the mind then would mean that the minute you begin to know something it is no longer objective, because it is tainted by your perspective of observation. If I look at a cylinder from the top, it only looks like a circle and for me that truth is absolute from that point, but it is relative to my position in relation to the cylinder. The basic idea then comes down to this: There is no such thing as objectivity as applicable to mankind. If we begin to know what it is, then by the very idea of what objectivity is then it no longer exists. 

Since Objective Truth collapses upon itself in the face of human observation, morality is then defined by whatever the majority believes in relation to the level of community within which it exists and is re-evaluated whenever the level of pertinence increases beyond the level of the existing group (For example: groups within groups, expanding groups, combining groups, etc.). This then lends that the chain will escalate up as far as the world, but since other-worldly intelligence is yet to be discovered it is then not logical to assume community levels 11 or 12 and you jump straight to 13 if the group as a majority consents not only that 13 exists but also on what/who 13 is. 

For example: Premarital sex by levels of community

1. I individually believe it's "bad" as you can get diseases and it damages it's own value within the context of marriage (escalate to 2)
2. The majority of my immediate family and friends concur (escalate to 3) 
3. Most people who know my friends and family closely also concur (escalate to 4)
4. The majority of the city I live in believes it is okay (either escalate to 13 or stop)
5. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
6. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
7. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
8. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
9. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
10. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
11. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
12. (Doesn't apply-already negated)
13. I am a Christian. I fall subject to the subjectivity of the Eternal Force (God) and the consensus is that it is "wrong" among the believers of this particular deity.

In this case you can see how it is Absolute Truth, where Christians would then be concerned, however it is simply a subjective truth for those who don't believe. If the majority of the city I live in sided with me (even if on an unobserved level) then we now hold morality and it is then escalated to the next level of State, and so on.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

For Christians: Paul says that we aren't supposed to hold non-christians to the same standard we hold ourselves to. We should be doing what we can to help them come to know what we know, but inevitably it is the Light that draws all men unto itself, not the lamp. Our job is to allow the Light to shine, not to convince other people that it exists or that it is the right thing. Once they have seen and believe the light, we are to hold one another accountable. 

Stop telling non-christians they have to conform to christian standards or they are going to hell. If they haven't seen the light and met Jesus, then according to our belief they are going to hell regardless of behavior. Show them Jesus before condemning them.

For Non-Christians: It is equally acceptable for Christians to say that an Absolute Truth exists and for you to say that it does not. We are simply two separate people looking at the cylinder from different angles. We may see a circle and you may see a rectangle, but in the end neither of us understands fully what we are looking at. Christians aren't "bigots" or "antiquated" for believing the way they do. They are justified in their own beliefs even under the rules of subjectivity and that's okay. 

Stop calling christians ignorant and bigotted for their beliefs. Often times Christians don't feel deep in their hearts that some things are wrong that the bible says but they consent to the will of their deity and as such have compassion for those morals. It's not biggoted. It's not ignorant. It's looking beyond self and considering a larger picture, which is what most non-christians do when they make the argument that religion destroys people.