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Re: Evolution of religion - some implications
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John Perkins
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Oct 22, 2003 20:21 PDT
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One problem about saying that religion is a positive evolution trait is
that humans predate any known religion by a long time. I think the
connection is via imagination. Having a good imagination is a good survival
trait. Religion is imagination, but misdirected.
There are positive social and medical aspects of religion. But humanists
still definitely need to reject religion. The costs of religion far
outweigh these benefits. Humanists need to provide an alternative.
Promoting a universal ethic, based on common principles is one aspect.
Providing community, social interaction, music, singing, ceremony and
ritual is harder, but would be useful in promoting humanism.
John
At 17:45 22/10/03 +1000, Victor Bien wrote:
| | To me the following article supports these points I have made at various
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times:
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* Humanists, Rationalists go too far in attempting to reject religion
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(perhaps illustrated by our unwillingness to be categorised as a religion)
- "religion can serve a positive purpose in making people feel part of a
group". Humanist et al tend to dwell on the negative side of religious
life, over things like the crusades and jihads, but that can be seens as
focussing excessively on religios who have taken religion too far...
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* religious people have more motivation to get up and do things and create
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flourishing organisations unlike Humanists or simply non-believers whose
lives tend to dissipate (due to the lack of any metaphysical mission). The
threat of divine punishment is a strong motivator! "Having survival
advantage" means amongst other things a general vitality to ensure ongoing
life! This may involve activities to promote one's group or organisational
life, being missionary orientated etc.
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* while singing and dancing and various pious practices would be a big no
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no amongst Humanists perhaps we could benefit with inventing some endorphin
generating activities to help build our social bonds?
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* perhaps we need to become a social religion?
* Many churches are essentially "social religions". For example the
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social life of Italians typically centres around the Catholic church. But
much of what the Pope says is taken with large grains of salt! Notably
birth control measures is an area where the average Italian accedes to the
Pope's edicts in name only. Still I recognise that their adherence to the
church no matter how nominal gives the Pope and the church hierarchy to
pursue policies that have dreadful effects in the 3rd world... Perhaps we
should conceptualise our opposition to religions as opposition to not only
"political Islam", but also to political Christianity and political judaism
- Zionism?
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Victor Bien
--- Scanned and OCRed from SMH 14.6.03 ---
Scientists find a way for religion to exist even if humanity didn't
Deborah Smith
Science Writer
If the tape of life on Earth was replayed, humans might not evolve
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again. But its highly likely some other kind of introspective bipedal
creature with binocular vision would eventually roam the planet.
| | So says Paul Rainey of the University of Auckland, who creates re-runs
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of evolution using mini-worlds of identical bacteria. Under similar
conditions, he finds the microbe clones he starts within each "replay"
invariably evolve into the same two new types of bacteria, dubbed
"wrinkly"and "fuzzy" spreaders. There are many different genetic pathways,
however, that lead the microbes to the same result. Professor Rainey has
found.
| | The research is part of mounting evidence that although evolution is
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based on random mutations, some outcomes like having eyes or even being a
wrinkly bacterium - are more likely than others in our world.
| | "There are certain designs that work better than others," Professor
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Rainey said.
| | "Some are so good that when they arise they become prominent because the
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individual expressing this trait has a high probability of being successful
and having more offspring."
| | He says the research suggests evolution may be predictable in future,
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with scientists forecasting how organisms will adapt to their surroundings.
| | The complexity of some of nature's best designs, like eyes, can be
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mistaken for evidence of a designer. But there is no "hand of God", at
work, says Professor Rainey.
| | However, if the walking, thinking, seeing creature he envisages in a
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replay of the tape of life evolves a big enough brain it would probably
invent religion. That's the view of Robin Dunbar, of the University of
Liverpool, writing in New Scientist magazine on the five big unsolved
questions of evolution. Professor Dunbar says religion is a survival
advantage to creatures living in altruistic societies like ours, because
the threat of divine punishment carries more weight for believers than
earthly policing or appeals to decency.
| | "Gods are created by big brains to prevent free riders benefiting from
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co-operative society without paying the costs," he writes.
| | Religion can also be seen in a more positive light, away of making
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people feel part of a group.
| | "It's surely no coincidence that most religions involve practices such
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as flagellation or long periods spent singing or dancing, which trigger a
flood of endorphins, whose opiate-like effects make us feel relaxed and at
peace with those we share the experience wIth," he writes.
| | The magazine says the other main unsolved evolution questions include
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how life first evolved on Earth, how mutations lead to evolution and how
new species are formed.
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--- SMH article ---
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