Mike writes:
I was suggesting that we all ask ourselves about lust, and what the New Testament says about it. If anything I was attacking Christians and therefore myself, as we believe that sin is prevailent in all mankind, not just atheists therefore it is not fair to single out atheists over other groups.
I think your point is interesting and well-taken. Unfortunately, I encounter a good number of Christians that single out some 'sins of the flesh' as abominations and others as maybe not your first choice of actions, but Jesus understands.
(I apologize in advance for the long anecdote!) There is a YouTube vlogger who used the name GodGunsGutsGlory. That account was suspended so he uses a number of alias now (godgunsgutsgloryver2, godgunsgutsglory4g, truthvideosver2, slaythefaggots, slaythefaggot2, exposingthetrolls, and several others. Obviously, as you can see by some of his aliases, he is very much anti-gay and about 100% of his videos are all or in part some hate message against homosexuals (and NOT just 'the sin').
Anyhow (for more background), the guy is divorced and remarried. He has a video where he sits in his van in a parking lot videotaping women walking by making crass comments about their appearance and to what degree he would 'do her'. He constantly uses phrases while zooming in on body parts like "That was made for us, guys, for us to get pleasure from". Anyhow, enough of the background.
So myself and a number of others have responded to this guy (who, by the way, considers himself to be a true, bible believing Christian). On the subject of divorce he 'cites' 1 Corinthians as saying it is okay to get divorced if your spouse wants to leave. When we brought up Matthew 5:32, 19:3-10, Mark 10:2-12, and Luke 16:18 about divorce he told us all to shut up we do not understand the Bible and 1 Corinthians trumps our out-of-context verses. When I brought up Matthew 5:27-30 (about his video taping women and lusting) he re-affirmed that lusting after women is what God intended and it is not adultery if you look but don't touch!
His seemingly favorite Bible verse is 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. He uses it as a sword and a shield. He can attack anyone with it, then when accused of say urging the deaths of homosexuals he claims it isn't his thought, but God's word. He emphasizes the fornicator, homosexual, prostitute, and idolater in the verse while mostly silent on adultery and drunkenness.
The point of this post is not to say "See, Christians sin too!" as that point is not the issue and is admitted by all. What this does illustrate, imo, is an example (not evidence!) of why I find the OP to be basically meaningless. Why would we expect "more perversities" among atheists than believers? Is it "If you do not accept objective morality then everything becomes permissible"? If so I would point to examples such as above where very subjective moralities are used (cherry picked?) to condemn other's sins while defending ones own. That is to say, some Christians allow themselves a very long leash on the defining their own morality while claiming they are well within the Biblical definitions.
Doctor Bashir: "Of all the stories you told me, which were true and which weren't?"
Elim Garak: "My dear Doctor, they're all true"
Doctor Bashir: "Even the lies?"
Elim Garak: "Especially the lies"
™ Version 4.2