Even if reason helps define ethics, it may not compel moral behavior. People often know what’s right but act otherwise—religious belief can add a motivational layer that reason lacks.

Just because behaviors evolved doesn’t mean they are morally right. Evolution might explain why we cooperate, but not why we ought to—which is a philosophical, not biological, question.

Many secular societies were historically shaped by religious ethics. Their current moral standards may still reflect residual religious influence even if explicit belief has waned.

Animal cooperation may resemble morality, but it lacks intentional ethical reasoning. Human morality involves reflection, choice, and justification, which animals do not demonstrate.