Why has every human culture--no matter how isolated--believed in a spiritual reality...in a God or gods? Is our species genetically "hard-wired" to believe such things? Are religiosity and spirituality evolutionary adaptations--coping mechanisms--that emerged to enable our species to survive our unique awareness of death? The answers to this and more can be found in Matthew Alper's, The God Part of the Brain: A Scientific Interpretation of Human Spiritualuty and God. To find out more, go to: www.godpart.com "Excellent Reading" -Edward O. Wilson, two time Pulitzer Prize winner A lively manifesto...For the discipline’s specific application to the matter at hand, I’ve seen nothing that matches the fury of “The ‘God’ Part of the Brain,”which perhaps explains why it’s earned something of a cult following. —Salon.com "Alper uses a Socratic method to brilliantly and flawlessly argue that our concepts of God are derived from the mechanics of the brain...enormously important...full of scientific and philosophical truths." -Mark Waldman, Senior Editor, Transpersonal Review "All 6 billion plus inhabitants of Earth should be in possession of this book. Alpers tome should be placed in the sacred writings section of libraries, bookstores, and dwellings throughout the world. Matthew Alper is the new Galileo. Immensely important. Defines in a clear and concise manner what each of us already knew but were afraid to admit and exclaim. The cats out of the bag." -John Scoggins, Ph.D. TABLE OF CONTENTS PROLOGUE BOOK I: THEORY'S EVOLUTION Chapter 1: Throwing Rocks At God Chapter 2: What Is Science? Chapter 3: A Very Brief History Of Time Chapter 4: Kant Chapter 5: God As Word Chapter 6: Universal Behavioral Patterns BOOK II: INTRO TO BIO-THEOLOGY Chapter 1: The Spiritual Function a) Jung b) Universal Spiritual Beliefs And Practices Chapter 2: The Rationale a) Man's Awareness Of Death b) The Pain Function c) The Anxiety Function d) When Awareness Of Death Meets The Anxiety Function e) The Advent Of The Spiritual Function Chapter 3: The Spiritual Experience a) Origins Of The Spiritual Experience b) The Ego Function c) The Transcendental Function Chapter 4: Drug-Induced God Chapter 5: The Spiritual Gene Chapter 6: The Prayer Function Chapter 7: Religious Conversion Chapter 8: Why Are There Atheists? Chapter 9: Near-Death Experiences Chapter 10: Speaking In Tongues Chapter 11: The Guilt And Morality Functions Chapter 12: The Logic Of God: A New Paradigm Chapter 13: What, If Anything, Is To Be Gained From A Scientific Interpretation Of Human Spirituality And God? EXPLORE THE EVOLUTIONARY AND NEUROPHYSIOLOGICAL ORIGINS OF: -Pain -Anxiety -Self-Conscious Awareness -Human Spiritual Consciousness -Spiritual/Transcendental Experiences -Religiosity -The Healing Properties of Faith and Prayer -Near-Death Experiences -Moral Consciousness -Guilt and Sin -Mathematical Consciousness and the universal concepts of infinity and eternity -Atheism -Religious Conversion
Now science would say no but if one studys history it would seem so. It is puzzling why the idea of a higher being is so popular among the masses but we aren't built with a innate ability to believe in a superior power.
I think that it was Marx who observed something to the effect of that religion is the opiate of the masses.
The opiate of religions Originally posted by candy ---------- I think that it was Marx who observed something to the effect of that religion is the opiate of the masses. ---------- (Yes, and I love this quote! I don't think we're hardwired to believe in a god or gods. I think it comes from peer pressure, wanting acceptance among friends, fear of the unknown, the list could go on and on. Growing up back in the 50s and 60s, where I lived, being a Xian and acknowledging it publically was the rule of the day. That was in the days before John Lennon said "the Beatles were more popular than God." Of course, he got slammed for saying this, but he later explained what he meant by his comment which had nothing to do with God at all but rather peoples' choices. Today, with society being diverse, being a Xian is not in vogue. Too many publications contrary to Xian doctrine have appeared. Churches are losing members by leaps and bounds. Churches are folding. I live in a big metropolitian city with all kinds of nationalities living here. Xianity is no longer the main religion. Most of the Xians living here don't speak English, although they have their ethnic speaking places of worship. Xian churches have become very competitive in the market place with billboards everywhere, TV advertising, leaflets, flyers, phone calls (yes religious telemarketers!). It's their begging people to "come home" that sticks in my craw. They use PR companies, spin doctors, everything one could imagine to draw a crowd. What's hard is keeping them. It's the same old song and dance, though. I've watched a few of them on TV and they say the darn thing over and over again each week. They've added nothing new to the routine. Being Xian anymore is a big joke. So, no, I don't think we're naturally hardwired. We just want to be part of a group--to be accepted. I'm definitely NOT an Xian. I'm a recovering Catholic, so I saw the light a long time ago. It's unfortunate that Xians refuse to see the light or hear the truth. That's why more are leaving the faith. The truth is starting to seep into their brains that have been hardwired by their church. That's where they are hardwired, they're not born that way. Back in the day it was acceptable to be preached to and lied to and nobody knew the difference. Today's churchgoer is more educated. Our culture has become full of cutting-edge technology, so people aren't are gullible as they once were. Well, its a start to cleanse the brainwashing out of their heads. The more people who leave their churches will eventually come to know they were lied to their whole lives. And, it is up to those of us who have found the truth to help them find it and to not forget it.)
i noticed how you said human animals...out of curiosity, are you a satanist? this has nothing to do with your post, it is off subject...sorry people.
Hahahahahahahaha How do you nuts find this place? Someones a satanist if they realise humans are animals? Thats hilarious. "Out of curiousity" what exactly do you think humans are? Anyway, on the subject; It is entirely possible for an organism to evolve any thing that will aid it or even not-hinder-it. A trait could arise in a species that opens it to the concept of spiritual beliefs. If this trait pays off it will stick. As I've said in another thread, I see evidence for spirituality in other animals. I think killer whales have found more success by regarding the art of hunting as a spiritual practice. It seems to have made them appraoch the activity with exagerrated vigour, and in turn it has made them more successful. Early human spirituality may have assisted them in being more successful, the many religions we see may have spawned from this broad "spirituality sponge" that all humans are born with. And perhaps some other animals are born with it too. But like most hardwiring in the advanced mammals it seems to be very flexible and ready to absorb anything similar to what it was intended for. So it wouldn't be called hard wiring in the traditional sense, not in the way a shark is hardwired to hunt, but more in the way a sea otter is hardwired to swim. They aren't born with the ability to swim, but they are born ready to be taught how. It is just an advanced form of hardwiring that is flexible and dependent on parental behaviour that it needs to predict or "hope" will occur. BTW, EO wilson is awesomePlease Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
I once heard a theory that the basis for religion was not the belief in any higher power. Instead, according to this theory, religion arose from the desire to live forever - the will to live. It's a pretty basic realization for most creatures to see that: 1) Life is pretty good, and 2) Everybody dies. But if life is good, you don't want to die... so you believe that it's not possible - either that when you're die you'll be reborn to enjoy this life again, or that you'll go on to some other, alien life that will still be good (because you'll still be alive). Examine the Old Testament, for instance. In OT there was no "hell". Instead, you just STAYED DEAD. The greatest punishment was to be dead, that is, not to exist. This is not to say that all animals must enjoy life and have the will to live, but it might be that depressed, suicidal animals don't tend to propagate themselves as fast as happy vital ones. The more recent tendency toward believing in realms of eternal suffering comes from a society that doesn't really believe in death at all any more. Examine, for instance, the popularization of the Zen concept of seeking emptiness - wanting to pass out of existence. Why would anyone want that? Anyway, next time some fundamentalist tries to tell you that all life is suffering (a recent popular concept), remember that they're lying because they want your money. This is the real world - there's ice cream cake, people to be with, big shiny cars to drive. There's more television than you could ever watch in your life, and more books than you could read in five hundred years. And if you ever get bored of that, you can always try to make little walrus sculptures out of soapstone. Life is good! That's why we want it to last forever.
Interesting question I have pondered some, and believe that people are. It is not always a religious diety, though. You see people often with little care for God, but almost and sometimes fanatical beliefs in something else. Some people are obsessed with money, fame, environment, jobs, etc. I think there is an innate human desire to worship at least something, if not God. I think people supplant diety worship with some type of secular god, whether it be ideals, objects, or self. I believe God gave us the desire to worship, we have use our liberty to decide how and where to direct it. Marx's religion was communism and labour issues, politics. A god to worship by a different name.
there is a difference....satanists do believe that humans are no different than animals. christians believe that humans are separated than animals. i've never heard anyone else use the term human animal, so i wanted to ask. and even just talking about science, people don't always say human animals...you're the first i've heard, but i probably haven't lived as long as most of the people in this site anyway. i was just curious, i guess curiosity killed my cat.
OverTheStars: Humans are animals because humans are most closely related to other animals genetically/phenotypically. This is a case of taxonomy, not religion. For simplicity's sake I will direct you to look at this book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...f=sr_1_6/002-0184449-5864026?v=glance&s=books This is a book by Desmond Morris called The Human Animal. There has been a bit of an ideological break in spiritual circles over whether animals have souls or not. Those who do not believe that animals have souls consequently believe that humans are not animals (if they believe humans have souls). However, when it comes to classifying humans as part of the natural world, our taxonomic classification is Kingdom Animalia <- This is what makes us an animal. Phylum Chordata (Subphylum Vertebrata) Class Mammalia Order Primates Family Hominidae Genus Homo Species Sapiens This is of course subject to change.
