savethedreams
Active Member
I don't really 'believe' in any religion, however, deep inside, i have a spiritual side, and i'm always agnostic in-different about God.
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Is it natural to be "religious" or believe in god?
- Thread starter savethedreams
- Start date
Kilgore Trout
Misanthropic Humanist
I don't think it's natural, but it's certainly typical.
savethedreams
Active Member
Nice.
Dirty Penguin
Master Of Ceremony
To be or not to be...that is the question....I couldn't resist. I personally think it is natural not to be religious. Often one becomes religious or "spiritual" because they seem to be seeking something or are looking for an answer to a deep personal question...(i.e. Why am I here?, What is the meaning of my existence?)....
savethedreams
Active Member
swamplizard
Human
Greetings,
Is it natural for one to prefer one music genre while another prefers different?
Is it natural for one to eat of a source while another partakes of a different?
Can one be unnatural?
Just rambling,
swampy
Is it natural for one to prefer one music genre while another prefers different?
Is it natural for one to eat of a source while another partakes of a different?
Can one be unnatural?
Just rambling,
swampy
Noaidi
slow walker
Yes, I think it is natural. If the vast majority of people believe in a deity, then we can assume that this behaviour has some biological basis. Sure, cultural transmission is an important aspect, but why do so many people retain and actively practice the belief throughout their lives? What benefit does it serve?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurotheology
These two authors present an interesting hypothesis from a evolutionary psychology perspective:
Matthew Alpert
The GOD Part Of The Brain - Matthew Alper
Jesse Bering
http://www.scilogs.eu/en/blog/biology-of-religion/2010-12-07/the-god-instinct-by-jesse-bering
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurotheology
These two authors present an interesting hypothesis from a evolutionary psychology perspective:
Matthew Alpert
The GOD Part Of The Brain - Matthew Alper
Jesse Bering
http://www.scilogs.eu/en/blog/biology-of-religion/2010-12-07/the-god-instinct-by-jesse-bering
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Me Myself
Back to my username
This.
Look at a child, because deep in your subconcious, the child´s methaphours and worldview still reigns.
Boethiah
Penguin
I'm not sure if it is biological. I'd say that it is largely societal. Most areas of the world have some sort of religious tradition deeply entrenched within the populace. Many people grow up with religion. Being taught something from an early age helps reinforce something, and I'd imagine much of the success of religion can be credited to big families and strict moral codes. My musings.
I'd say it would be pretty difficult to determine whether or not it is biological to believe in God. It would be impossible to hold the experiment in a controlled environment. In that sense it might be impossible to prove religion is biological, or not societal anyway.
I'm no scientist, though. Maybe there's a chemical or hormone that drives us to believe. Let's hope not.
I'd say it would be pretty difficult to determine whether or not it is biological to believe in God. It would be impossible to hold the experiment in a controlled environment. In that sense it might be impossible to prove religion is biological, or not societal anyway.
I'm no scientist, though. Maybe there's a chemical or hormone that drives us to believe. Let's hope not.
Dirty Penguin
Master Of Ceremony
True...
What other nature, other than human, do you believe we have?
Breathe
Hostis humani generis
This this this.
Storm
ThrUU the Looking Glass
Assuming recent discoveries such as the spandrel theory are true, the answer is a resounding YES!
Of course, our biological predisposition is no indicator of veracity.
As to your comment about having a spiritual side... theist, atheist, agnostic... every human does. That's undeniably hardwired into us. It's just healthier in some than others, and has nothing to do with theology.
Noaidi
slow walker
Storm, can you explain what you meant by that?
If it's not natural, does that mean it's supernatural? Alien? Artificial?
Sorry, I had to. Use of the word "natural" here is probably a poor choice. Depending on how the word "god" is defined, though, the answer is variously "yes," "no," or "maybe." We can probably say that everybody - unless they're mentally debilitated - ponders questions of meaning and purpose in life, though. When we don't find a good answer to that, we tend to kill ourselves. The bane of having human intelligence, I guess. Does any other animal species commit suicide due to aimless purposelessness?
Sorry, I had to. Use of the word "natural" here is probably a poor choice. Depending on how the word "god" is defined, though, the answer is variously "yes," "no," or "maybe." We can probably say that everybody - unless they're mentally debilitated - ponders questions of meaning and purpose in life, though. When we don't find a good answer to that, we tend to kill ourselves. The bane of having human intelligence, I guess. Does any other animal species commit suicide due to aimless purposelessness?
Storm
ThrUU the Looking Glass
Well, I can try.
Healthy spirituality is being at peace with oneself and one's relationship to the larger world. It manifests in personal integrity, and a certain fearlessness in the face of doubt and dissent.
OTOH, dysfunctional spirituality results in hypocrisy and fundamentalism. Such folk are so out of touch with who they are that they cling to what they think they should be, and cannot tolerate deviation in others.
For examples, compare the Dalai Lama to Fred Phelps... MLK to OBL.
Noaidi
slow walker
Well, I can try.
Healthy spirituality is being at peace with oneself and one's relationship to the larger world. It manifests in personal integrity, and a certain fearlessness in the face of doubt and dissent.
OTOH, dysfunctional spirituality results in hypocrisy and fundamentalism. Such folk are so out of touch with who they are that they cling to what they think they should be, and cannot tolerate deviation in others.
For examples, compare the Dalai Lama to Fred Phelps... MLK to OBL.
OK, I now understand what you were getting at. Thanks.
Kilgore Trout
Misanthropic Humanist
It's natural in that creating and perceiving false patterns is a side-effect of the imperfections and vagaries of our cognitive abilities and psychology. it seems, as a species, we're not that good at discerning whether there's a lion in the bush, or a squirrel. Evolution rewarded those who erred on the side of caution.
Mathematician
Reason, and reason again
Not to be a stickler for terms, but we have to define what natural means in the context of this thread. Are we saying instinctual? Is it as natural as having feelings?
I think expressive belief in something that is not immediately evident is part of our common psyche; it's how we build trust. From there we get religion, spooks, and economics.
I think expressive belief in something that is not immediately evident is part of our common psyche; it's how we build trust. From there we get religion, spooks, and economics.
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I think there is some degree of "natural-ness" in it; otherwise, why do we have it in the first place?
However, I think the "natural" tendency is deification, rather than believing in more abstract God-concepts; that doesn't pop up until fairly recently in history, as far as we can tell. Children tend to deify their parents, and convince themselves that their toys are alive, or that their imaginary friends are real. Even atheists seem to have some aspects of this tendency: such as idolizing certain individuals (real or fictitious), or even nature. Atheistic pantheism, after all, is essentially the deification of nature.
Of course, deifying something doesn't automatically qualify as theism: it takes a bit more abstraction to reach that level.
However, I think the "natural" tendency is deification, rather than believing in more abstract God-concepts; that doesn't pop up until fairly recently in history, as far as we can tell. Children tend to deify their parents, and convince themselves that their toys are alive, or that their imaginary friends are real. Even atheists seem to have some aspects of this tendency: such as idolizing certain individuals (real or fictitious), or even nature. Atheistic pantheism, after all, is essentially the deification of nature.
Of course, deifying something doesn't automatically qualify as theism: it takes a bit more abstraction to reach that level.