Here's the two main issues I have with the whole god thing.
Morality: Religions tend to treat this whole issue by using axioms delivered to us either directly by god or indirectly though a prophet. If you ask a follower of a given faith why can't you break such and such rule they will respond with a simple "because god said so". I believe this is wrong, god in a moral context is not automatically granted special immunity because he has super powers. It's a two way street and he has to play by his own rules. With that in mind morality takes on a more philosophical role and must operate inside an alternate mode such as a social contract even in the presence of a god. I believe Buddha once said that even the gods are bound by karma.
Genuine good and evil requires free will. Humans exist inside of a dynamic and through a never ending cycle of cause and effect this dynamic defines who we are from one second to the next. It is through this process that we are able to make choices. in it's simplist form there are only 4 objects of concern in this dynamic. An input, a state, an output, and rules. if any three are know the forth can be determined.
Because of this device it is possible to predict with absolute certainty the future choices of a person if all other variables are taken into account. However, if all of our future actions are deterministic in nature how can we have a free will?
With that in mind it doesn't really matter if god exists or not, it doesn't change anything for us down here.
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