RE: The Biological Value of Religion
August 25, 2014 at 7:53 pm
(This post was last modified: August 25, 2014 at 9:23 pm by BrianSoddingBoru4.)
Something occurs to me (not often, but it does 
).
It has been brought up more than once in this thread that there should be a distinction made between religious beliefs that are useful and those that are harmful. Question: Are there any useful beliefs that are uniquely religious in nature? If there are, then I think the case is made that religion can have value to human beings. If there aren't, then good in the world can be neatly accomplished without all the harm brought about by religion and the religiously minded.
Hitchens put it this was (approximately - I'm doing this from memory): Is it possible for an ethical statement to be made or an ethical deed to be performed by a believer that could not be said/done by an unbeliever? The Hitch claimed that he never got a satisfactory answer to this, and I suspect he was correct. If this is the case, then where is the value in supporting or even continuing religion, at any level? Believers give to charitable causes, so do unbelievers. Atheists are no less likely to go out of their way to help someone in rough straights than is a Christian or Hindu.
As for communal support, we ALL have that. Where I live, it takes the form of street parties and neighbourhood outings. For others, it could as easily be weekly church services. As far as a coping mechanism goes, why is chatting up God about your troubles any more valuable than talking to your best mate (if God is you best mate, you've got more troubles than whatever you're asking for help with)?
I'm willing to stipulate that religious belief may have been a survival mechanism (in the biological, not political sense) at one time but I remain unconvinced that it has any unique value in the here-and-now.
Boru
). It has been brought up more than once in this thread that there should be a distinction made between religious beliefs that are useful and those that are harmful. Question: Are there any useful beliefs that are uniquely religious in nature? If there are, then I think the case is made that religion can have value to human beings. If there aren't, then good in the world can be neatly accomplished without all the harm brought about by religion and the religiously minded.
Hitchens put it this was (approximately - I'm doing this from memory): Is it possible for an ethical statement to be made or an ethical deed to be performed by a believer that could not be said/done by an unbeliever? The Hitch claimed that he never got a satisfactory answer to this, and I suspect he was correct. If this is the case, then where is the value in supporting or even continuing religion, at any level? Believers give to charitable causes, so do unbelievers. Atheists are no less likely to go out of their way to help someone in rough straights than is a Christian or Hindu.
As for communal support, we ALL have that. Where I live, it takes the form of street parties and neighbourhood outings. For others, it could as easily be weekly church services. As far as a coping mechanism goes, why is chatting up God about your troubles any more valuable than talking to your best mate (if God is you best mate, you've got more troubles than whatever you're asking for help with)?
I'm willing to stipulate that religious belief may have been a survival mechanism (in the biological, not political sense) at one time but I remain unconvinced that it has any unique value in the here-and-now.
Boru
‘I can’t be having with this.’ - Esmeralda Weatherwax
