A godless universe

Mankind's plight in a godless universe is little better and probably much worse than in the godlike-force scenario. As individuals, people's lives are less than specks on a timeline of eons. Time rolls ever onward as humans blink and die. Humanity endures, but on the biggest scale has only existed briefly. Humankind cannot be considered the peak of evolution because their world can tame them instantly. Mankind in such a plight cannot escape the crush of a collapsing universe.

In such a world, morality serves only to keep the peace between pitiable creatures. People outline the behavior acceptable for those who are part of their society. Individuals who step outside their boundaries must be removed from the society or their behavior must be changed. But, the mores of the culture are arbitrary -- chosen, descrbed and delineated by men. They cannot be absolute. Any commonality among the cultures' morals can be ascribed only to the genetic, instinctual response to stimuli -- or chance.

It seems unlikely that such strong moral feeling, so prevalent amongst humankind, should stem from instinct. An inclination to turn away from the passions that keep the fittest alive seems hardly likely in an evolutionary scenario. Surely, morality is something that is programmed into us by some being or entity whose purpose for creating us is beyond mere propagation of a species.