Why Are Some Inclined Towards Religion, But Others Not?

[Revoltingest]

Note:
This post isn't based upon any searching or research on this topic.
I know it's rambling.
I'm curious what people think.

Some categories.....
1) I notice that some people are drawn to a single force acting behind
the scenes to explain then natural world, eg, a god, a coterie of gods.
Furthermore, I notice they tend to see other things, eg, politics, as having
hidden forces to explain events, eg, the commie conspiracy to enslave
us all, the Muslim conspiracy to take over the world.

2) Others (this heathen included) tend to eschew hidden masterminds
(natural or supernatural) prefering explanations rooted in material causes.

I don't think #1 types are any less intelligent than #2s, but each has a
hardwired (or perhaps something more analogous to firmware) way of
groking reality.
I wonder?
- There appears to be a component of culture in determining orientation.
- Is there a genetic component too?
- Experience also appears to play a role, eg, unmet prayers, a desire for
spiritual connection to something greater than oneself.
- Some people will more readily adopt as truth something which is plausible
but unverified. Then all things are seen thru this lens.
- Others are more skeptical, & consider alternatives to what might be obvious.

The above things apply to many things other than just religion.
Thoughts?

 

[Desert Snake]

Dunno, I 'm not inclined towards religion.

You might interpret that statement, as I like donuts, or something, though.

hence, I will answer your op,

Yes, atheism is what happens when satanism wasn't supplanted by catholicism..
I hope that helps...

 

[Revoltingest]

Dunno, I 'm not inclined towards religion.

You might interpret that stat


ement, as I like donuts, or something, though.View attachment 18315 hence, I will answer your op,

Yes, atheism is qhat happens when satanism wasn't supplanted by catholicism..
I hope that helps...

All such civil discussion is welcome!

 

[Desert Snake]

That's completely subjective, btw.

And I 'm not an atheist, for anyone who interpreted that in that manner

 

[Revoltingest]

That's completely subjective, btw.
And I 'm not an atheist, for anyone who interpreted that in that manner

Subjectivity is OK in this thread.

 

[LuisDantas]

I wonder?
- There appears to be a component of culture in determining orientation.

I agree. Certain premises are so ingrained in certain cultural environments that one can't help but develop the ability to, at the very least, pretend for a moment to agree with them so that effective communication becomes possible.

- Is there a genetic component too?

Perhaps. There may be a neurological predisposition towards certain forms of abstract thinking - or for having a hard time at that.

- Experience also appears to play a role, eg, unmet prayers, a desire for
spiritual connection to something greater than oneself.
- Some people will more readily adopt as truth something which is plausible
but unverified. Then all things are seen thru this lens.
- Others are more skeptical, & consider alternatives to what might be obvious.

The above things apply to many things other than just religion.
Thoughts?

There is also, IMO, the matter of longing and hoping. Many people that I know actually argue that there must be an afterlife (or even a God) because otherwise "it would make no sense".

 

[LuisDantas]

Yes, atheism is what happens when satanism wasn't supplanted by catholicism..

Uh, hardly.

 

[Desert Snake]

Uh, hardly.

So you say.

 

[bobhikes]

Note:
This post isn't based upon any searching or research on this topic.
I know it's rambling.
I'm curious what people think.

Some categories.....
1) I notice that some people are drawn to a single force acting behind
the scenes to explain then natural world, eg, a god, a coterie of gods.
Furthermore, I notice they tend to see other things, eg, politics, as having
hidden forces to explain events, eg, the commie conspiracy to enslave
us all, the Muslim conspiracy to take over the world.

2) Others (this heathen included) tend to eschew hidden masterminds
(natural or supernatural) prefering explanations rooted in material causes.

The above things apply to many things other than just religion.
Thoughts?

There are two sides to our mental intelligence, Logical and Emotional both are necessary for our survival. If you were able to determine usage I believe you would find the non-religious have a higher reliance on the logical side and the religious have a higher reliance on the emotional side. Based on the fact that more of the world is religious than not and that logic requires more work(a problem at times for survival). I believe faith based thought to be more prevalent in most people. So at best if you are really logical you are close to 50/50 and that a normal person may be 30%logical/70% emotional.

 

[Brickjectivity]

I don't think #1 types are any less intelligent than #2s, but each has a
hardwired (or perhaps something more analogous to firmware) way of
groking reality.
I wonder?

Look at it from an evolutionary standpoint. We know that no person has all characteristics in common with another. This means that humanity has survived through means of characteristics distributed in the populace. You could say humanity is analogous to white light, actually a combination of colors, because the whole of what is a 'Human' does not fit into one person. The whole thing has survived somehow while made up of limited, mortal and mostly uneducated creatures; somehow packing into the populace more potential than what is found in a single person or family. Not only is it analogous to a rainbow but also to a slime-mold as there could be some distributed intelligence. There are parts, just like a creature. Some people are like stingers, some like muscles, some like sensors and so forth. All of it has been required, theoretically, to get us to this point. We apparently have need both of believers and of cynics.

 

[SabahTheLoner]

I would say that those who are drawn to religion have a natural belief in something and wants to be able to describe it for some reason. I self-identified as simply a non-religious atheist for years before I was able to communicate other aspects of my beliefs in a way that was comfortable for me. I believe in gods as archetypes and natural energies, so I'm a soft polytheist. I believe in the natural world and humans as a part of nature, so I'm a Pagan. I believe in being different from the mainstream culture and personal freedom, and being an adversary of two opposing sides, so I'm a Satanist. Without these labels I would have to describe in essay all of my beliefs that I naturally adhere to, and without religious labels it gets to be a very long explanation. And why did I start looking for religion? I had moral and emotional dilemmas in my life that I wanted to get rid of by confirming that my natural beliefs are valid or invalid. I found many answers that made me comfortable with myself and changed my world view. I guess that makes religion useful in some ways.

 

[Revoltingest]

Look at it from an evolutionary standpoint. We know that no person has all characteristics in common with another. This means that humanity has survived through means of characteristics distributed in the populace. You could say humanity is analogous to white light, actually a combination of colors, because the whole of what is a 'Human' does not fit into one person. The whole thing has survived somehow while made up of limited, mortal and mostly uneducated creatures; somehow packing into the populace more potential than what is found in a single person or family. Not only is it analogous to a rainbow but also to a slime-mold as there could be some distributed intelligence. There are parts, just like a creature. Some people are like stingers, some like muscles, some like sensors and so forth. All of it has been required, theoretically, to get us to this point. We apparently have need both of believers and of cynics.

I see our diversity of thought processes as evolutionarily useful.
Whatever we face, some will be best suited to address the problem.
All will benefit....generally.

 

[Nous]

I notice that some people are drawn to a single force acting behind
the scenes to explain then natural world, eg,

energy.

 

[LuisDantas]

So you say.

Darn right I do.

 

[The magical volleyball]

I think the societal environment plays a great deal into ones belief or disbelief. Imagine an Amish person who didn't want to believe in God but also didn't want to be forced to leave their family. Lying about belief would be the only way to maintain life as usual. The same is true of rural America while they do not run non believers out of town they do see you as less of "good" person. This is why most children aren't able to openly question the existence of god till they go to college and in an environment where religious debate is not only accepted but encouraged.

 

[Revoltingest]

energy.

...& matter....& dark matter....& dark energy....& space....& time....or space time (if you prefer).

 

[idav]

Note:
This post isn't based upon any searching or research on this topic.
I know it's rambling.
I'm curious what people think.

Some categories.....
1) I notice that some people are drawn to a single force acting behind
the scenes to explain then natural world, eg, a god, a coterie of gods.
Furthermore, I notice they tend to see other things, eg, politics, as having
hidden forces to explain events, eg, the commie conspiracy to enslave
us all, the Muslim conspiracy to take over the world.

2) Others (this heathen included) tend to eschew hidden masterminds
(natural or supernatural) prefering explanations rooted in material causes.

I don't think #1 types are any less intelligent than #2s, but each has a
hardwired (or perhaps something more analogous to firmware) way of
groking reality.
I wonder?
- There appears to be a component of culture in determining orientation.
- Is there a genetic component too?
- Experience also appears to play a role, eg, unmet prayers, a desire for
spiritual connection to something greater than oneself.
- Some people will more readily adopt as truth something which is plausible
but unverified. Then all things are seen thru this lens.
- Others are more skeptical, & consider alternatives to what might be obvious.

The above things apply to many things other than just religion.
Thoughts?

Its cause the brain typically makes us believe we are being watched, or something else in the room etc.

It has been found the experience can be stimulated to happen.

 

[The Holy Bottom Burp]

Interesting question in the OP, some are attracted because of social pressures (i.e. what is the 'norm'; survival instincts come into play) some defect because they want to be contrary and stand against the cultural norm, dunno why. Let me think about this a little more!

 

[Skwim]

According to the information in THIS thread, "How Critical Thinkers Lose Their Faith in God" people gravitate toward one of two different ways of thinking: intuitive and analytic. Of course this isn't an either-or situation, but the two ends of this thinking spectrum. The intuitive thinking process is designated as System 1, and the analytic thinking process is designated as System 2. System 1 people are more disposed to unquestioningly accept religion, whereas System 2 people are inclined to put an effort into understanding religion, and more often find reasons to reject it.

I don't think #1 types are any less intelligent than #2s, but each has a hardwired (or perhaps something more analogous to firmware) way of groking reality.

Whether or not there's any correlation between intelligence and the two was not mentioned. And why some people are predisposed to either of the two wasn't addressed either. The most that might be concluded is that because System 2 people put more effort into their thinking than do System 1 people, System 1 people may be lazier, apathetic, indifferent, uncaring, etc. toward the basis of religion. AND, because people of lower IQs wouldn't seem to be drawn to analytic thought, more often than not they will settle for religion. Hence people with lower IQs will be more inclined to be religious.

.

 

[Corvus]

I have always felt a vast gulf between me and most people, which has less to do with problem solving or intelligence in general, more to do, with the way one looks at the world, fundamentally. I cannot explain further, since I do not know how to explain how I personally see things, comparatively, I just feel that is the target area. People tell me talking to me is somewhat like dealing with a robot or an extremely intelligent child. Atheism seems patently obvious and natural to me. Science is without question the only truly valid method of investigation into the nature of reality. I am here I guess to see it from the other side. How one suspends one's reason or relaxes skepticism. This is alien to me. I might lack the necessary neurological wiring perhaps.