The Evolutionary Advantage of Believing in God

If you are an evolutionist, and an atheist, what is the scientific explanation for the almost universal nature of religion? People in every age in every place have developed a religion of some sort. Just about everybody who has ever existed has believed in the gods. Why?

NPR posted an article on just this issue titled: Is Believing In God Evolutionary Advantageous. Fascinating insights on how some in society account for God and religion in our modern world. Even within the stories of the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament - stories of Israel resisting the religions of the surrounding nations and staying loyal to the One True God - one wonders, where did all those other religions come from? By the time we get to Abraham, YHWH has to call him away from the gods and idols of his ancestors. Where did those gods and idols come from? Who decided what to worship?

The NPR article follows a story of a scientist who works to develop a credible theory for why we moderns still worship God or gods. The conclusion? Believing in a deity that will reward or punish you is effective. Scientific studies and sociological data reveal that people behave better when they believe that a supernatural being is watching their actions. This results in more human beings able to better cooperate, it fosters more kindness and hence creates for a stronger community. Thus, from a evolutionary point of view, religious people survived, and irreligious people didn't. Belief in God has gotten into our genes, it has preserved us, and it now sustains us.

All sorts of interesting conclusions can come from this study, and it also prompts more questions. Does it matter what kind of supernatural being is watching over you? Are there some supernatural beings that prompt better cooperation and stronger community then others? How sincere does the belief in the deity need to be to shape behavior? What kind of punishment is required in the belief system to "encourage" cooperation and community? Does it matter what the reward is?

Obviously belief in gods and goddesses came from somewhere. They were around before Noah and Abraham and Moses became acquainted with God/Elohim. There has been substantial changes over the past several hundred years in how modern citizens experience religion and relationships with the gods. Science has explained much about our world that used to be attributed to the divine. It seems that one of the few uses left for God is to prompt integrity, cooperation and participation in community - under threat of punishment.

Provocative ideas.

The Brain: Organ of Science and Spirituality

Before I dozed off this afternoon for my nap, I was catching up on some interesting NPR articles online.  First I perused a story on the retirement of Helen Thomas - some people miss their exit from professional life. Next was a somber article on the Pope begging for forgiveness from God for the terrible abuses. Also read about Carly Fiorina's gaffe - apparently mocking a hairdo can derail political ambitions.

But the really, really interesting online article by NPR was titled: Is This Your Brain On God? It's a fascinating look at the most recent science on spirituality - particularly the role of the brain and chemicals.

Barbara Bradley Hagerty wrote a book on the subject: Fingerprints Of God. The online article is a five-piece, interactive story including excerpts from the book and other sources exploring this subject of the brain and experiencing God.

As a Christian, a pastor, and someone that is kind of spiritual - and as someone interested in science and the ordering of the universe - I'm intrigued by scientists delving into the brain to satiate their curiosity on spiritual and chemical reactions.


Some Quotes from the five articles:

"research suggests that chemicals that act on the serotonin system trigger mystical experiences that are life-altering"

"Some epileptologists believe that many of the great religious figures, such as Moses and St. Paul, had epilepsy. Now neurologists believe they've found the sweet spot for spiritual experience -- in the temporal lobe. Some scientists say the temporal lobe, which is associated with emotion and memory, is the seat of spirituality. It's also where epileptic activity takes place."

"Can prayer have an effect on sculpting the brain? “Neurotheologians” – researchers who are studying the brain science of spiritual experience -- think so."

"Called "psychoneuroimmunology," the idea is that thoughts affect your body. But now scientists -- including those at the National Institutes of Health -- are engaging in research to uncover whether a person's thoughts can affect another person's body."

"Materialists say the visions that people report experiencing when they come close to death are hallucinations. But a small but increasing number of scientists posit that consciousness is related to, but not dependent on, the material brain."

Hagerty notes that for scientists on both sides of the issues, a lot of their conclusions are shaped by their bias towards spirituality and religion. It's hard to have a neutral perspective when it comes to such a personal and mystical topic - plus it's an emerging arena of science. But what is we're really learning?

Does the physical/chemical analysis prove that spirituality is just an extension of our material body? Does it mean there really is no God or goddesses, no nirvana or heaven - our spiritual experiences are manifestations of serotonin or epilepsy? Is religion becoming more and more useless when it comes to ordering life and explaining history?

Depending on your point of view, the scientific data either proves that God is a myth, or it can reassert what we've believed - that spiritual experiences connect us with a Divine Power outside of our material existence. I, admittedly, am already convinced that God exists, I believe that Jesus of Nazareth was resurrected - so I want the science to come alongside and strengthen those positions.

But what I really want to know is the truth, to better understand reality. In some areas, science is very, very helpful. But we are also spiritual people - and sometimes what is most real is what we can't see or touch. There are limits to science, and to spirituality. So when they come together, I want it to be as friends - together we can discover reality.