The Biological Value of Religion

[Dystopia]

While clearly there are thousands of religions with contradicting creeds, to a great degree there is a common thread that runs through them: an uneasiness, that is, there is something wrong about mankind as he naturally stands, and a solution, a sense of being saved from the wrong. People of all faiths and beliefs tend to also commonly share the practice of a "prayerful communion," a powerful connection they feel with some type of an ideal that is infinitely beyond the limits of everyday sense. I do not share any sympathies for theology, but as a psychological exercise, religion seems to me to be something of a survival mechanism not completely discordant with the unique functions of any other given species. Whereas evolution has shaped bodily functions to succeed in certain physical environments, I cannot help but think it has also shaped a kind of psychological disposition to enable creatures with the capacity for rational thought to survive in a world that to many minds often appears irrational. This is religion, and just as all creatures vary in an abundant of ways, some more successful than others, so does religious belief. I find myself drawn to the pragmatic approach: it is not a matter of whether or not our ideas are true so much as they are useful. Is religion useful? For many, this is an indisputable and resounding yes.

Hey there pickup_shonuff, I've only read your thread now, it's interesting. To start off I'd like to ask - Are you implying that evolution has created a sort of psychological predisposition to religion? And if the answer is yes, would that explain why some people remain religious even after tremendous amount of evidence is presented on the contrary?

Religion is certainly useful in a variety of ways, even if based on lies - Religion gives people a sense of purpose and mysticism, may make them happier, helps people have a code of rules to live by, and for some it is a tool of power (politically speaking), it also helps people cope with fear of death and tries to explain mysteries, some that have already been explained, others that remain unexplained.

If evolution does shape some people to be religious/theists, could the next evolutionary stage, from a biological/psychological perspective, be the absence of religion/theism (and therefore atheism)? The age when people do not need religion - It's happening right now.

This doesn't change the fact that religion can also be dangerous and restrictive, but we should parse between harmful or helpful religious beliefs in the same way we would with more or less tolerable political ideologies or hobbies or what have you. Anyway, those our my initial thoughts and I'd love to explore them further with anyone who's interested.

I do not like to compare religion with politics, hobbies or any other topic - I think each case is an individual one and comparison is useless - Politics isn't comparable because it de facto shapes what happens in society (or at least it shouldn't be religion exercising this function) - And I'm as tolerant of political ideologies I don't like as I am with religion - I'll treat Marxists/communists the same way I treat Christians and Muslims - I accept they have the right to think like this or that but I do not adopt their views, and in some cases I find them reprehensible.