Oxford to Study Faith in God
February 19, 2008(AP) -- University of Oxford researchers will spend nearly $4 million to study why mankind embraces God. The grant to the Ian Ramsey Center for Science and Religion will bring anthropologists, theologians, philosophers and other academics together for three years to study whether belief in a divine being is a basic part of mankind's makeup.
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Good objective study this promises to be.
Well, being Templeton funded, that clearly biased sentenced is not too surprising...
Quoth the wise Bertrand Russell: "Religion is something left over from the infancy of our intelligence, it will fade away as we adopt reason and science as our guidelines." How hard it is for many to grow up...
Learned facts and questions?
1. Is human reason exhibited only when %u2018flight or fight%u2019 reaction is resting? When human emotion is also exhibited, is a balanced whole possible?
2. Consider a human%u2019s self centered, basic concept of good and evil. If it hinders one, %u2018It is evil.%u2019 If it helps one, %u2018It is good.%u2019 This concept or judgment allows one to easily occupy the role of a judge, god. When that self wants group cooperation it is even easier to conceive of Good, Evil, and God.
3. God becomes exchange currency between ruler, leader, dominance and slave,
citizen, submissiveness.
4. Religion is action based on one%u2019s concept of God. God is proposed as one who is unexplainable. Everything unknowable or unknown becomes organized
religion%u2019s domain.
5. Religion is used culturally in acceptance of two or more logically incompatible thoughts or statements. (Say the Nicene Creed.) This ritualized ill-logic allows believers to act on pure emotion without respect of logic or of known facts. This provides a basis for ultimate love and self sacrifice. Even a basis for rejecting one%u2019s own self centered behavior. Even so, it provides a basis for hate and unlimited cruelty.
6. As a result, some propose %u201CModeration in all things.%u201D as a logical remedy.
7. Control of oneself is your only control. Control is lost whenever responsibility is rejected, or given-up. It is never taken. If one thinks or believes in control of something, is that one delusional?
8. Make your decision with acceptance of responsibility for its results.
Not doing so adds weight to your shoulders, acceptance removes it.
9. Accept responsibility for yourself. Rescue yourself. Find your own purpose.
10. Choose role models wisely. The greatest influence on your life is yourself.
11. Living beings need companionship. Yet, humans ultimately live life alone.
12. Consider; %u201CThere is no ultimate rescuer.%u201D
13. Paranormal power or ability for biological, self reproducing matter is limited to insignificance. For example, if any human possessed a paranormal ability, evolution would either; one, breed it to extinction, or two, spread it through out a human population, or three that ability would confer no advantage or
disadvantage. A paranormal ability that confers no advantage or disadvantage,
given human ability to use anything as a tool, is not significant. A subset of one and two is that ability in process of evolution. Such ability has yet to be clearly reproducibly exhibited.
14. When desiring or needing perfection in oneself or others, consider does a
reasonable human exist? Also, a Stork to deliver babies, Easter Bunny, Santa
Claus, Mother Nature, spirit, ghost, angel, ghoul, dragon, devil, and unicorn do
not exist. Just as ideals of perfection, universal truth, universal good, universal evil, justice, fairness and rights do not exist. Is Universal Truth preached dogma? Is Justice delivered revenge?
15. Is there a group organization other than one based on family relationships, or mimics human brain organization?
16. When at the point of conceiving one%u2019s next group, consider the following theory.
16.a. Psychology of group dynamics suggests a single member joins with others
for a common purpose and thereby forms a group, tribe, village, state,
nation, United Nations, religion, club or lodge. Primary advantages are
emotional bonding, united action and increased variety of skills. Due to
space, time, and human behavior, personal purpose and fulfillment is
diminished whenever a group member does not participate in and form
personal acceptance and responsibility of group decisions and actions.
16.b. Group organization is controls a willing member%u2019s actions. An endless list
of needs and wants are offered in exchange for this willing behavior.
16.c. Willing behavior becomes custom, norm, right behavior, civil rule, law,
and even sacred. When an organization requires and enforces commonly
accepted norms, willing behavior is lost and not encouraged. A new
member or child is taught that willing behavior is an ideal and often
impractical. Membership is denied during the first years until training is
complete, that is, until one behaves normally.
16.d. A person receives enough advantage and reduced risk that nearly all are
normalized.
16.e. A member relates to a group as a being, giving it identity. All those
unpleasant, untidy, unacceptable, inhuman behaviors are acted in the name
of group authority. Anything is allowed in order to preserve the group.
17. Personal and group behaviors that undermine group union and sense of
community are:
17.a. Hunger, lack of air, shelter, clothing,
17.b. Greed, (taking or receiving more than share)
17.c. Laziness, (giving less than share)
17.d. Wonton disregard, injure, abuse, rape, kill, enslave, (depravation of life,
liberty, or pursuit of happiness)
17.e. Deception, (false representation, impersonation, contractual failing)
17.f. Lack of information needed to make reasonable choice and acceptance of
responsibility,
17.g. Lack of full employment, recreation, respect, and love.