>>538272
>I mean, in the end, that's what it essentially is. Conflict drives history, and humans aren't much different from ants once you look at mass society and how the world functions on a large scale. Personally, I find the latter repulsive, but that's just my 2 cents.
There have been numeros occasions at which humanity has actually overcome it's basic animalstic side, and that just in terms of polticis while ignoring things such as art and philosophy. History isn't just driven by war and conflict alone, no society thrives on war and conflict alone, there is always a strive towards a moral order, it's essentially basic human logic since live by the sword, die by the sword, isn't just some phrase but the actual dynamic of power politics, "might is right" is always a short lived thing. Sure, this earthly order will be exposed to corruption and decay, as the city of man will always be, but it's not some coincidence that the poltical order of the world after a while always swings back into an equilibrium which has so far always been enforced by a moral order. You do not have to sell this moral order to people, just as you don't have to sell animalistic passion to them, simply because both are part of the human nature. I can understand your cultural pessismis from modern point of view, the last century has unleashed horrors beyond imagination, but it is foolish to asume that it has always been this way and that the current state of things will be the final form of humanity. It's somewhat depressing to live in an age of decay, but do not let your spirit succumb to eternal fatalism
>I am on board with the morality espoused by Christian thought. I am a big fan of self-control, not worshiping the material, etc. but I do not see a way to avoid the material foundation of the world.
Sounds as if you have accepted the metaphysical order of the world without recognizing the divine within it. John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God", this is the most important verse to understand the relation between the divine and the material. "The Word" originally means Logos, and Logos is the order of the world, as one is willing to accept order in the world, one must accept the concept of Logos. As sentient beings we are able to recognise the order of the world, this order manifests in the material, but it isn't the material itself. The most universal example for this is mathematics, numbers are abstractions, numbers aren't materialistic, the whole concept of mathematics isn't materialistic, yet math works in an utmost beatiful way and applies perfectly to the material. Accepting the "Word" means accepting the validity of non materliastic concepts, the other choice would be relativism, which would entail that human understanding is merely subjectiv and relative, and that essentially means that the world is total chaos and all your understanding, be it scientific or otherwise, is just an illusion. I find the latter hardly sustainable as you can't really prove a concept that denies the existence of prove. Now to get back on track, if one accepts that we can recognise the order of the world, it means that our given sense of logic is not only beyond humanity but also beyond matter. The concept of morals is no difference, we have a sense for morality and the moral law itself resonates with our logical understanding of the world. Finally it all comes down to what we see as the origin of this order. In the christian view, God isn't just the creator of this order as this would probably make him more a demiruge kind of figure but the order itself, the Word is with God and God is the word. That being said, one can recognize the validity of the Logos without being christian, but he has to overcome materialism and accept that the world isn't as simple as that, even if it would be easier that way. In this essence there is only one absolute truth, the Logos, the order, and, for a christian, god.