Can YOU answer these TWO quick questions about EVOLUTION>>>?

Question

1.)"survival of the fittest", Have we evolved to a point where our morals conflict with our survival since people generally help those who are disabled, sick, poor, since it's the right thing to do?

2.)Why did we evolve into "spiritual/God believing" organisms, In what ways does this trait help us to survive or live better? Is it normal/smart to go against this trait?

Answer 1

1)Our morals are certainly conflicting with our survival, because we have reached a point where literally anyone can survive and pass on their genes. Life used to be so difficult that only the smartest and strongest of humans would survive and reproduce, but this is no longer the case.

2)evolution has nothing to do with the concept of God arising in man's mind

Answer 2

1) That's so funny I was just thinking about this very thing the other day. I think that "survival of the fittest" no longer applies to humans, for the reasons you mentioned. We are keeping alive weaker humans who would not survive naturally. Obviously we wouldn't let these people die even if they are weakening our race because it isn't morally right. But it is an interesting concept...does that mean that humans are becoming weaker? Even so, I don't think it conflicts with survival...your question in itself proves Darwin's theory is no longer true, or at least, not in the way it once was. Our technology is advanced enough that it isn't "survival of the fittest" any longer. It is "survival of whomever technology/medicine can help".

2) The obvious reason why we evolved into "spiritual/God believing" organisms would be because there is a God. I think we live better with God...He gives us hope; an explanation; and is the basis of our principles and morals. If there was no God to believe in, how would people know it was wrong to kill? I don't think it is smart to go against this trait (God believing), but that is because I'm Christian. I'm sure that atheists would feel differently.

Answer 3

Unlike your beliefs, people that believe in evolution don't believe that we were/will be perfect in every way nor is our behavior strict following one code of conduct. We sometimes do things that make no sense or that leads even to our death.

Why do we have an appendix? Why do we have an imagination? Some things may not directly have a vital part in our existence yet is just a byproduct of our evolution. Believing in God is sort of like believing in anything else that we don't know for sure exist.

In addition, helping the less fortunate and each other creates a well functioning society that will thrive. Some people have needs and some people have the product to satisfy that need. The other person with that need may have something different that the other person needs. When we work together we can defeat more problems and live a better life.

The every man for himself idea doesn't work because no one man can survive and thrive without the help from others.

Answer 4

1. "Survival of the fittest" is a tautology, because in Darwinian terms "fittest" means "that which survives". It doesn't mean best, or strongest and definitely not most worthy in moral terms. The fact of evolution by natural selection no more justifies right or wrong than the fact of gravity justifies pushing someone off a cliff.

2. I think the trait you are talking about is the capacity for and desire for transcendence. Religious belief and religious experience are only one manifestation of this. While evolutionarty theory can propose some mechanisms to explain why natural selection might favour such a trait, I don't think they do justice to most people's subjective experience. Transcendent experience is a difficult thing to study objectively, and evolution would best be served by an "I don't know" answer.


They're not "quick" questions. The first requires some explanation of the modern synthesis of evolutionary thought; the second is quite a profound one about what science can tell us about the depths of human experience.

Answer 5

1 - There's no conflict at all. You misunderstand the "survival of the fittest" paradigm. Morality has evolved because we are social animals - in itself an awesome evolutionary trait that has helped ours, and other species. Having evolved to live socially, we have developed the structures that sustain and perpetuate it. Morality is one of those constructs. Groups with one, 10,000, or zero gods develop morality - it's like language.

2. In the same way that there are moral norms that go by the wayside as societies develop, some views about the universe are also superseded by theories that are more coherent with reality. For example, the barbarous and genocidal prescriptions found in the Bible are dismissed as belonging to another time, or another people - "We have a new covenant," and such.

Furthermore, at no time in human history have we ever been a homogeneous mass of "spiritual/God believing organisms." There have always been "spiritual" groups and practices without gods. (e.g., Buddhists). And there have always been sizable groups who thought it was just nonsense intended to enrich the priestly classes. In short, there really isn't a "God instinct." That's just one variation on a larger theme.

Answer 6

1. Most people don't help those in need. The rich stay rich and the poor stay poor. If everyone did help everyone else, there would no longer be a third world. We haven't evolved enough to see that we are indeed, one planet. We are all humans, we should all find ways that benefit all of humanity, not just the rich.

2. Religion is a product of fear and grief. Humans have more emotions than any other organism. We suffer more and for most people, they can't handle this and rely on religion and a belief in god for comfort. Religion is based on ancient views of the world and can not evolve into today's world.

Those who believe in god, believe that this world sucks so bad that the next life is the only place that they want to live. Which in turn makes this life worse because don't care enough to improve things here, in this world. The only world and life we are guaranteed.

Answer 7

1) I think you make a vary valid point. I cannot answer, but makes very good sense.
2) We did evolve into religious beings. Why? I believe out of FEAR. Fear of the unknown. Fear of unexplainable phenomenon that occurs on earth. We may never know how it affects the survival factor. It may only be a small stepping stone for a huge jump.
In all honesty, I believe that each religion is becoming diluted and will eventually become combined with the next or cease to exist all together. In this scenario, you are not going against this trait, for this trait is headed in that direction already.

JMO

Answer 8

1) I'd argue charity helps the species as a whole. A society that helps each other has a competitive advantage against its environment more often than not, since a group of people can often tackle problems that would doom them individually. Think of a pack of wolves. Is the pack mentality of wolves weakness? I would think the fact they learn to work together is one of their strongest characteristics.

2) I think religious/spiritual beliefs actually do assist people, from a biological perspective. People who sincerely believe that some unknown force is looking out for them will 'sleep easier' at night, and probably have lower stress levels on average. In that regard, spirituality can be a very positive trait.

Answer 9

Morality does not conflict with survival in the evolutionary sense. Helping others of our species makes us a stronger social organism and spreads human genes more widely than any other organism. When we provide this help it is not at the cost of our own survival but a redistribution of excess material not absolutely necessary for our survival.
If belief in God is the socially accepted condition where you are it obviously increases your chance of finding a mate and for the pair of you to produce children that you know are yours. This ensures passing on your genes.
If your religion helps YOU to survive it is surely a beneficial evolutionary trait but only if it is inheritable.

Answer 10

since we are social animals and evolved from social animals, we survive as a group not individuals, altruism is an essential component of our make up. though i do believe that the serendipitous evolution of consciousness has reinforced and rationalised that altruism as morals and ethics, taking it beyond mere instinct.
i don't think that we evolved into god believing organisms, again god/gods were a rationalisation. i think that a belief in the supernatural is a side effect of our need for explanations, to find a reason, cause and purpose to things. long ago our ancestors live on a flat world where the sun rose and set the stars came out at night, people they loved died for no explainable reason, storms blew and floods drove them into the hills, the rains failed and they starved. god/gods supplied the answers, they give a closure to the curiosity of many people. religion is not biological, it's cultural.