Are atheists mentally ill? The Impact of Religious Practice on Social Stability

Originally posted by NeoParadigm
reply to post by Stormdancer777

 

Robin Dunbar argues that the critical event in the evolution of the neocortex took place at the speciation of archaic homo sapiens about 500,000 years ago.

Isn't that blasphemy?

Depends who you ask.

reply to post by Stormdancer777

Why not?

Don't you find it as interesting as the scientific research that suggest atheist have a higher IQ?

I didn't find that very interesting at all. I found it to be a little baiting, actually. That's why I'm asking what your stake is when you post this kind of thread...are you actually making a point, or just setting the field?

Shouldn't we explore the issue?
I think the evolutionary process is fascinating and specifically how they say religion was necessary to evolve and survive.

Sure, but I'd like to know your stance first. Why should I be the first to go when you brought it up?

I don't believe religion is necessary to evolve. Religion was almost completely absent for the thousands and thousands of years it took for mankind to develop into Neanderthals. It wasn't until Homo sapiens showed up that any convincing traces of religious mentality were found among the remains of our ancestors. Around...30,000 years ago was when religious mentality started building a case amongst our ancestors, as indicated by rough evidence such as drawings of Venus and relics.

So right up until about 30,000 years ago, religion had little to no influence on evolution or survival. Only in the last 15,000 years has religion had any serious influence on society. And in the space of that 15,000 years, all the way up to present day, religions have come and gone as quickly as businesses. Religion is a tool, a market, and it will someday evolve itself to become something entirely different, something entirely superior to any theism or theocracy.

So in answer to your question: No. Religion is no more an evolutionary necessity than brown hair.

Seems to me spirituality is a survival instinct.

Seems to me that spirituality is the opposite of survival instinct. If we were operating by survival instinct, we would be murdering, raping, stealing, lying, and breaking essentially every spiritual edict we hold sacred...because that's what survival is. Survive by any means necessary.

reply to post by AfterInfinity


Don't read to much into it, I find the topic interesting and have posted the information on evolution of faith and survival instincts on the forum a few times before.

Every time faith or lack there of comes up I think about this evolutionary process.

reply to post by Stormdancer777

The mind is king in this day and age and people are judged by there intellect. If one is full of knowledge and hold it as king then they have eaten from the tree of knowledge and will be less likely to find God.

reply to post by Stormdancer777


So you are selective about what you believe of your faith?

Speaking of Satanism, would this philosophy or religion even have been possible with the the Biblical text?

Ok GTG

reply to post by Itisnowagain

The mind is king in this day and age and people are judged by there intellect. If one is full of knowledge and hold it as king then they have eaten from the tree of knowledge and will be less likely to find God.

Out of ignorance comes piety. I will gladly forsake piety if it means I am making room for understanding. Understanding out of ignorance is an egregious contradiction of terms.

reply to post by Stormdancer777

Speaking of Satanism, would this philosophy or religion even have been possible with the the Biblical text?

Would you care to rephrase that question?

reply to post by Stormdancer777


Perhaps, it was just an example of a religion. My point is just that these studies don't prove the existence of a deity.

Originally posted by AfterInfinity
reply to post by Itisnowagain

 

The mind is king in this day and age and people are judged by there intellect. If one is full of knowledge and hold it as king then they have eaten from the tree of knowledge and will be less likely to find God.

Out of ignorance comes piety. I will gladly forsake piety if it means I am making room for understanding. Understanding out of ignorance is an egregious contradiction of terms.

When you find God you will know all there is to know.

Originally posted by NeoParadigm
reply to post by Stormdancer777

 

So you are selective about what you believe of your faith?

Isn't everyone?

As I have stated before on the forum I have studied many different religions trying to take a journey back through time.

I did this because I was dissatisfied with the pablum taught in the churches, I was looking for truth, historical fact.

Many people interpret scriptures differently.
It is interesting to follow them through archeological references and records.

The Bible to me is many things.
History, myth, philosophy, and a good dose of the metaphysical.

John 1

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

How beautiful is that.

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

reply to post by Itisnowagain

When you find God you will know all there is to know.

You must be a very simple person if you are so easily satisfied. As for myself, I am not intellectually lazy.

I just wanted to add, I will never forget the time I posted a few wisdom teachings from the Bible to an atheist friend,

He didn't know where I got the quotes from and remarked how beautiful they were and asked where I had found them.




god is love

Originally posted by AfterInfinity
reply to post by Itisnowagain

 

When you find God you will know all there is to know.

You must be a very simple person if you are so easily satisfied. As for myself, I am not intellectually lazy.

But do you know God?

Originally posted by AfterInfinity
reply to post by Stormdancer777

 

Speaking of Satanism, would this philosophy or religion even have been possible with the the Biblical text?

Would you care to rephrase that question?

without

thanks

reply to post by Itisnowagain

But do you know God?

Do I know your imaginary friend? Fortunately, I can say I do not. Nor do I wish to. And quite honestly, if your faith in a deity is the source of all of you...eccentric views, then I can consider myself much better off.

No offense to you, of course. Ignorance is bliss, or so I hear. It's no wonder you are so satisfied.

Originally posted by AfterInfinity
reply to post by Itisnowagain

 

But do you know God?

Do I know your imaginary friend? Fortunately, I can say I do not. Nor do I wish to. And quite honestly, if your faith in a deity is the source of all of you...eccentric views, then I can consider myself much better off.

No offense to you, of course. Ignorance is bliss, or so I hear. It's no wonder you are so satisfied.

edit on 22-8-2013 by AfterInfinity because: (no reason given)

I do not believe in a God - I do not believe there is anything separate from God.

It is ok no offence taken from you - you are just being what you are as usual.

reply to post by Stormdancer777


At least 90% of the most commonly touted elements in the Bible came from paganism. If it hadn't been for paganism, Satan might have turned out a whole lot differently. Satan is stylized after gods who had nothing to do with death and destruction and deceptions. They were gods of fertility, of virility, of prosperity, and good fortune. In the same vein that Constantine substituted pagan traditions for Christian traditions, to ease the transition, he also vilified the pagan gods in order to make room for his one god, the Abrahamic god.

In short, neither Christianity nor Satanism would exist without the pagan bones on which to build their festering construct of putrid religiosity.

reply to post by Itisnowagain

I do not believe in a God - I do not believe there is anything separate from God.

It is ok no offence taken from you - you are just being what you are as usual.

That's a funny little jibe, considering you contradicted yourself in the same sentence. There's a reason I am what I am around you. I consider my previous post thoroughly justified. I'm sure it will only become even more so as you continue posting.

I'll go head to head with any religitard on life expectancy if I can use stem cells and all the rest of modern science and they stick with prayer only...

Funny thing how the p1 compares recovery rates "in the hospital" last I checked... those were scientists treating them not god.

I give religitards ONE aspect

Healthy living, it has nothing to do with cosmic yahweh, you don't drink, smoke, spend your money materially etc etc... your going to be healthier, people should just do those things because it's smart to do not because they fear hell or some imaginary nonsense... (pretty sure however all the killing in the name of _____ balances that factor out tho on a wide scale)