Sometimes, the New Scientist comes in with fascinating articles and some very unexpected takes on things. The latest edition (17 March 2012) is one of these gems. The article features a scientific look at God and religion and there are some interesting studies and conclusions.
Rather than take you through a scholarly analysis of the various articles, I will jot down what I took away from it.
First off, there is an argument (which is not new) that humans have an innate wiring to see God in the world around us - a greater cause-effect than randomness or just natural laws. Children, one author points out, can outgrow Santa Clause - but still retain their belief in God into adulthood. It is said that the "militant atheists" are bound to get frustrated because its not just a matter of appealing to people's rationality re the "silliness" of believing in a deity - because it is part of the very make up of who we are.
The various authors aren't arguing for the reality of a God as such - but rather recognising the part played by this characteristic of people in our development on the planet - and saying that its not just because were were indoctrinated as kids. Interestingly, taught religious creeds are seen as different from the 'people's religion' within us. A statement is made that while people might say that they see God as per the creeds - all seeing, in everything etc - that often, the actual image individuals have is a type of "super-human" out there looking after us. [Maybe that's why the figure and image of Jesus is so powerful. It allows people to identify with this superhuman a lot more than a more remote less tangible, all powerful Creator of the universe!].
Theologians are likened to scientists - both groups test and reflect and come up with complex laws and rules about how life works. Some if this isn't intuitive to people - as is the inbuilt draw towards god and this people's religion. So the proposition is put that, over time, this inbuilt religious belief is more likely to survive in human kind that theology or science!
I found this fascinating - obviously! Another interesting point was that people with a strong religious faith don't quite trust atheists - a reason why an atheist President of the USA is considered unthinkable [of course a more secular Australia has an atheist Prime Minister!]. Apparently if someone says they don't have a notion of God looking over their shoulder to keep them accountable, then there is a question mark in the mind of many people who do have that image! I have seen video clips where Richard Dawkins is asked by some religious leader how come he doesn't steal, rape and lie etc if there is no God! He rightly says that such a view is silly and that atheists and humanists can have very high moral values when it comes to taking care of the people and world around them and be in awe of what has developed naturally. But this article gives a clue as to why some of the strongly religious can not see this.
One of the articles also presents some of the scientific experiments that have been done to test for God - for example, using "double blind" experiments to see if prayer gives better results than no prayer..... All a bit silly really. One could say that it means that science takes it seriously!
So, an interesting series of articles - which doesn't answer any of the big questions of the world about why we are here etc or whether there really is a God - but it does explain a little about the "god gene" within us and why so many people are open to religion and a belief in God, and why some can follow some quite bizarre beliefs - and why we can have a religious bent even if intellectually we reject formalised religion!
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