Roughly speaking, the human brain developed the Biological God soon after it started developing reasoning, to keep up with reasoning as it started asking existential questions. Unable to explain the experience of the Biological God, humans attributed the phenomenon to external forces, and created the Cultural God.
In the future, reason will be enhanced, while spirituality will be much reduced, though not eliminated. As the Biological God has had less and less effect compared to the juggernaut of organized religion, mutations that reduced the Biological God have not been eliminated by evolution, so, in general, the phenomenon of the Biological God has decreased over the centuries.
Humans developed Animism first, in which humans projected the biological God externally, onto objects and forces in nature. Then came Polytheism, which projected the biological God externally, onto an imaginary Pantheon ("All the Gods"). Finally, humans simplified the Pantheon into a single Omnipotent, Omniscient, Creator.
While developing new forms of the cultural God, humans retained the old forms. Today Animism is still present in Africa and is on the rise with "New Age" beliefs; Polytheism is still strong in Asian cultures (such as Hindu); while Monotheism continues to make inroads thanks to world imperialists who tend to be followers of the Abramic religions (Jewish, Christian, Moslem).
Morality as a socially stabilizing force
For a long time, reason has been overpowered by spirituality, stifling research and discovery. Today, reason has been freed from the bounds of spirituality, which on one side has allowed humans to greatly expand its understanding of the world, but on the other side has weakened social morality. That morality may be based on unreasonable, unfair and arbitrary rules, but it has given society an effective constraint to a damaging free-for-all. Humans now need to develop a different self regulating force, based on reason instead of tradition and spirituality, to replace the moral code, if they want to continue functioning as a society.
Should Reason displace God?
No.
Even if the existence of the Cultural God is disproved, it should be purely for scientific (philosophical) reasons. In that case, the absence of a Cultural God (and the existence of a biological God) should be taught in school, but not in antithesis of spirituality. The dichotomy between Science (reason) and Spirituality (Religion, Astrology, Superstition...) is a false one. These are not at opposite ends of the same axis, but are instead orthogonal, and therefore independent. One can be as little or a much spiritual as one wants, regardless of how little or how much one uses reason.
Spirituality is what makes humans what they are, and is consistent with what humans experience. Spirituality answers existential questions and in so doing gives humans a reason to continue living. (Here I neatly bypass the philosophical question: "Should we strive for the continuation of the human race, or is it OK for it to become extinct?".)
It is possible that further evolution may give the human race a reason to continue existing, either by eliminating existential questions, or by finding a more compelling answer to them. Until then, humans will ask existential questions, and spirituality will answers them neatly. If we assume that the human race, as presently developed, must remain on Earth, spirituality must remain for at least a while longer, to justify the human race's existence and regulate its society.
In the future, reason will be enhanced, while spirituality will be much reduced, though not eliminated. As the Biological God has had less and less effect compared to the juggernaut of organized religion, mutations that reduced the Biological God have not been eliminated by evolution, so, in general, the phenomenon of the Biological God has decreased over the centuries.
Humans developed Animism first, in which humans projected the biological God externally, onto objects and forces in nature. Then came Polytheism, which projected the biological God externally, onto an imaginary Pantheon ("All the Gods"). Finally, humans simplified the Pantheon into a single Omnipotent, Omniscient, Creator.
While developing new forms of the cultural God, humans retained the old forms. Today Animism is still present in Africa and is on the rise with "New Age" beliefs; Polytheism is still strong in Asian cultures (such as Hindu); while Monotheism continues to make inroads thanks to world imperialists who tend to be followers of the Abramic religions (Jewish, Christian, Moslem).
Morality as a socially stabilizing force
For a long time, reason has been overpowered by spirituality, stifling research and discovery. Today, reason has been freed from the bounds of spirituality, which on one side has allowed humans to greatly expand its understanding of the world, but on the other side has weakened social morality. That morality may be based on unreasonable, unfair and arbitrary rules, but it has given society an effective constraint to a damaging free-for-all. Humans now need to develop a different self regulating force, based on reason instead of tradition and spirituality, to replace the moral code, if they want to continue functioning as a society.
Should Reason displace God?
No.
Even if the existence of the Cultural God is disproved, it should be purely for scientific (philosophical) reasons. In that case, the absence of a Cultural God (and the existence of a biological God) should be taught in school, but not in antithesis of spirituality. The dichotomy between Science (reason) and Spirituality (Religion, Astrology, Superstition...) is a false one. These are not at opposite ends of the same axis, but are instead orthogonal, and therefore independent. One can be as little or a much spiritual as one wants, regardless of how little or how much one uses reason.
Spirituality is what makes humans what they are, and is consistent with what humans experience. Spirituality answers existential questions and in so doing gives humans a reason to continue living. (Here I neatly bypass the philosophical question: "Should we strive for the continuation of the human race, or is it OK for it to become extinct?".)
It is possible that further evolution may give the human race a reason to continue existing, either by eliminating existential questions, or by finding a more compelling answer to them. Until then, humans will ask existential questions, and spirituality will answers them neatly. If we assume that the human race, as presently developed, must remain on Earth, spirituality must remain for at least a while longer, to justify the human race's existence and regulate its society.
1 comment:
i Wonder why are the earlier comments in this essay deleted?
peace ;-)
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