You believe in "religion"?

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You believe in "religion"?

Silly atheist, there is no evidence that religion exists! Anyway, thought you might like this post. This is partly what I was getting at in this post, put far more concisely.

Nebuchadnezzar (talk)03:49, 3 April 2012

I'm not sure I understand his point, but I *think* i do, and i think he's crazy. He himself says "cultures may not have a word for synatx but that does not mean their language has no syntax". The same is true about language, about "culture", sometimes even about cultural relationships (though rarely, i know of one native american group that has no word for wife/partner/spouse/etc.) So why is religion different? Yes, it's a new term for a concept - but that doesn't mean teh concept didn't exist.

Let me reread it tomorrow, when i'm not as confused, cause i really think i'm just being dense. or didn't read carefully - which often happens near the end of the day. ;-)

Pink mowse.pngGodot What do cats dream about?03:58, 3 April 2012

He's being a smart-ass but making an important point -- the basic cognitive elements of religious practice are not limited in any way to religion.

Nebuchadnezzar (talk)04:07, 3 April 2012

I woudln't doubt that. I always figured religion stems from something biological - but something that is there in our brains helping us live day to day. Pehaps (and this is totally pulled out of my ass) a child sees mom as capible of fixing everything, and therefore trusts mom implicitly to get that child everything, which is a biological necessity for survival, but also allows someone (or thing) to manipulate trust and "create" gods. or perhaps humans necessarily see all objects as "alive" as children, and as "helpful" or "un" in a very binary. (this one *is* pretty much proven - what it means, is anyone's guess, though). So those kids have this built in function to see all things as somehow able to help them or harm them - therefore lighting is "helpful" or "harmful" therefore it's got a will therefore it's god. or some such.

As for why we all see white when we get near dying; or why we hear voices, or sense peace after long exertions that aer otherwise called "mystical", i don't think any good Religious Scholar (karen Armstrong not included there) would say that it is in any way exclusive to religion, but rather that religion takes or uses natural biological reactions and says "see... that proves (it)".

Pink mowse.pngGodot What do cats dream about?04:14, 3 April 2012

Start here. (/Shilling for Atran.) BTW, your "ass-pull" is attachment theory applied to religion, which he debunks, though I think the case for it is slightly stronger than he lets on in the book, but still definitely not a robust explanation.

Nebuchadnezzar (talk)04:39, 3 April 2012