Why Do People Believe or Disbelieve?

Question

What is the relationship between science and religion? The advocates of theistic religion often maintain that religion expresses a mode of truth that is independent of scientific knowledge, and that religious experience presents a form of intuition or knowing that reason cannot comprehend. They claim that there is no conflict between these two domains and that they complement each other.
Can science explain religious behavior in naturalistic terms? Can there be a science of religion? Scientists attempt to account for various forms of human behavior: economic, political, biological, psychological. If we can talk about political science, or economic science, can we also talk about the science of religion?
I wish to focus on only one basic question: Why do people believe in religious doctrines, i.e., why do they accept the tenets of a religion and participate in its practices and rituals? Conversely, we may ask, Why do some people disbelieve in the tenets of religion or reject its pract

ices? If science confirms the hypothesis that there are deep sociobiological forces responsible, at least in part, for religiosity in the species, then we need to ask, What can we do about it, if anything? Cognitivists will say that we still should constantly strive to engage in criticism of outrageous doctrines. At the very least this will help to restrain and temper religious fanaticism, protect the rights of unbelievers, and perhaps develop an ethic of tolerance. If religiosity will most likely be with us in one form or another in the foreseeable future, can we develop secular and naturalistic substitutes or moral equivalents for the passionate longing for meaning? Can we serve up sufficient balm to soothe existential weltschmerz? Can we develop new symbols to inspire meaning and hope? Can we engender the courage to be and to become? In other words, can secular humanism offer a message as potent as theistic mythology?

Answer 1

Hey Jack,
Though I'm not really going to answer your question, I would like to talk about it.

This question almost sums up the reason I participate in the R+S section. I could never answer all of this in just a few paragraphs.

What I would like you to know is that I go on reading books around this topic. If you would like me to recommend some I would be happy to. Likewise, if you can recommend any, I would like to know.

"The God Delusion" doesn't really go into this in enough detail, nor does "The End of Faith."

"The Biology of Belief" may be a good start. You may also enjoy Dennet's "Breaking the Spell." I'm working on "Religion Explained" right now.

Feel free to write if you ever want to discuss these things, but I think your question is too broad.

Answer 2

No. Secular humanism in its atheistic, western form is the heritage of Western Monotheism. It all falls under the curse of Greyface: taking the world extremely seriously. The "scientific worldview" is to protestantism what protestantism is to catholicism. It is not a way of life and it will never be. I am an atheist but I do not derive my moral purpose or my joy in life from being an atheist. Art, philosophy and the writings of various religions stimulate me to ponder these questions. Yes, reflection upon nature does so as well, but not the reflection on nature in a scientific way. I seriously dig Buddhism and Taoism as methods of looking beyond the world of facts, but this is in part because the western ethical tradition has empasised for so long that it is literal, factual, orderly and serious. That it is an all-or-nothing deal. No, I believe firmly that "the way that can be followed is not the eternal way, the name that can be named is not the eternal name."

For the time being, I am a Discordianist. I might be for the rest of my life, though of course I hope not. At any rate I will probably never follow it's third commandment so I guess I'm not a REAL Discordian then.

Answer 3

Apparently there are two different areas of the brain which deal with decision making - One is based on emotion, the other is based on reason. We all feel the same kind of emotions (distress at the thought of our own mortality, the desire for an easier life etc.) and these translate into wishful thinking, but in rational people the other part of the brain overrides these emotional responses and we come to the conclusion that things don't become real just because we wish they would.

Answer 4

Buddhism works closely with science right now to help the neuroscientific world understand the mind better and they exchange info... also you see a lot of regular science like Quantum physics discussed next to Buddhism, etc. that is interchangeable.

It's a give and take.

_()_

Answer 5

Why Do People Believe or Disbelieve?

Your question covered a lot of ground. I don't want to muddy up the answer by hitting each point.

In brief;

Faith is belief in the absence of proof.
Free will is why we have a choice.
With freedom to choose, our choices have value.
Hope is why we choose to believe.
Faith is our source of hope.

Answer 6

I have seen some messed up stuff that makes no sense what so ever....

Supernatral type things tend to happen a good deal in and about my life....

And I personally avoid believing or disbelieving in any of it.... lol

Even if I ha prity good idea whats going on...

A good example being what seams to be a spiritual entity that tends to spend a grate deal of time around me..... but has invaded peoples dreams .... while I know them i have never really talked about her but they are able to give a perfect description of her aperance and altitude desipe not having been told a thing about her by anyone.

seams rather convincing sense this has happened on 3 separate ocations..... and more where they knew about her already (she aprently likes droping in on my friends).

However I could just be crazy and some how progecting this thoughts to them.... such is rather possable

or it could be one hell of a coencidence.....

I may have a prity good idea of whats going on but i don't out right believe or disbelieve it..... realy would't be suprized ether way it could turn out.... lol

Answer 7

I imagine you'd be interested in reading Andrew Newberg's books "Why We Believe What We Believe," and "Why God Won't Go Away," which address this very question from the point of view of neurobiology

Answer 8

im Catholic.. because my parents baptasised me.. that way.. I do not even believe.. if they could prove dinosaurs 3 000 000years ago why cant they find proof of God.... Yes i kno some of you's will say the bible.. but.. those storys arnt even thrue.. the prest sayed so.. he told us that the bible is a whole wack of storys untrue but with morals.. Adam and Eve... Thats insest.. God is against insest.. Wtv.. if you would like to believe go for it.. but god never did anything special to me.. and the ppl who dont have religion dont have a miserable life.. Somewhere in the Bible it says that he will respect the decisions we make.. and will forgive.. so forgive this.. i dont believe in you..

Answer 9

Star Trek


Will it come to the point that, in order for evolution to be true, all religion and its adherent must be eliminated?

Answer 10

i've got faith in my disbelief of god. i don't think that a disbelief in god without delay assumes a disbelief in each and every thing. i'm, for loss of an more desirable term, a spiritual atheist. i've got faith not each and every thing could be measured with the help of technology or arithmetic, that there is a few cosmic power and compassion (or/and absence thereof) to the universe. i'm not so self-righteous as to declare i've got faith my perception is the suited perception. whilst i've got faith my perception I comprehend that I have not any absolute data for it and that it must be fabulous to others. As such I even have self assurance in my perception. it is not in keeping with postponing my disbelief; as person "sinmore" states so eloquently "the observable international isn't in conflict with my concept" of the international or the divine. The hugeness of the universe and our super loss of suggestion approximately it provides to my perception. i need to be very incorrect in my perception yet i don't disbelieve it, lest it quit to be my perception to any extent further wherein case i will desert it for brand spanking new concept. I used to call myself agnostic till i found out that atheism became totally a pair of perception in gods. i don't think in gods because of the fact they are guy-made innovations. whilst i've got not got a clue what occurs as quickly as we die or how we live a factor of the universe i've got faith there is greater to it than shall we probable understand using 6-7% of our human innovations means. that's humorous. I constantly became agnostic approximately being agnostic because of the fact i did not understand the authentic definitions of atheism and agnosticism. i assumed that on the grounds that i assumed in 'some thing greater' i could not be atheist. whilst i'm not fund of lumping myself into titular communities, i've got faith that my disbelief in god is rational and unquestionably proved. i can not anticipate to understand what's accessible yet I additionally won't enable myself to be tempted with the help of a few human concept of reward and punishment. i ought to have noted as my perception in a cosmic power "god" some years in the past yet i've got abandoned the nomenclature because of the fact the meaning of the term "god" is so nebulous and distinctive. whilst I as quickly as suspended my perception, I now understand that my objective in the international is to be your thirteenth slave and worship you because of the fact the goddess you're. Can an atheist have faith in a Goddess? ;-)