Name: Morals vs Religion: Is religion needed to uphold ethical behaviour?
Uploaded: 2023-10-17T02:46:47.000Z
Duration: 3 min 30 s
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Are supernatural threats and the concept of hell really good for society?

If, in addition to discussing crime rates, we broaden the scope of discussion and further

explore the impact of beliefs in hell and supernatural threats on public interests and

society as a whole, we can see sociologists putting forth various arguments both in support

From an evolutionary perspective, evolutionary biologist Dominic Johnson and psychologist

Jesse Bering proposed an intriguing theory in a paper published in Evolutionary Psychology

They suggest that the concept of supernatural punishment provides an evolutionary advantage

They argue that humans possess two characteristics that distinguish them from other species.

Firstly, humans instinctively use the "Theory of Mind" - the assumption that others possess

a mind similar to one's own, which helps explain their actions.

Secondly, the use of human language enables us to quickly communicate complex ideas.

These two features allowed early humans to leverage social constraints to control others'

selfish behaviors, providing an evolutionary advantage over other species.

For instance, chimpanzees can act selfishly in front of other chimpanzees without being

However, for humans, we know people can hear, discover, infer, remember, report, hypothesize,

plan, and act based on others' behaviors.

Meaning, if we commit harmful acts in front of others, we might face group sanctions.

The problem is, early humans didn't have surveillance cameras.

They couldn't possibly monitor everyone's actions at all times.

At this juncture, the concept of an all-knowing and omnipotent deity watching over you and

ready to punish wrongful deeds becomes extremely useful!

Dominic Johnson and Jesse Bering believe that over time, societies that embraced the concept

of a 'punishing deity' would fare better and survive longer than societies that didn't

A 2003 study by Harvard University researchers Robert J. Barro and Rachel M. McCleary found

that in developed countries, nations, where belief in hell outweighed belief in heaven,

had a higher Gross Domestic Product (GDP), seemingly supporting the aforementioned argument.

However, not all scientists endorse this view.

Evolutionary scientist Nicolas Baumard and anthropologist Pascal Boyer, in a paper published

in Evolutionary Psychology in 2013, pointed out that many ancient societies, including

the highly developed civilizations of Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, Aztec, Inca, and Maya,

But a close examination of these civilizations' religions reveals that their gods, apart from

demanding sacrifices and loyalty, weren't overly concerned with human morality or how

Those familiar with Greek mythology know that many gods in Greek myths had dubious moral

Yet, these aforementioned civilizations didn't stagnate or fare worse than others with 'moralized

religions' due to their lack of such beliefs.

Therefore, they challenge the theory that supernatural punishment serves as a driving

On the contrary, they believe the causality is the other way around.

Present-day religions lean towards moralization because humans have evolved moral intuitions,

and religions that align with these intuitions resonate more with people, ensuring their

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Morals vs Religion: Is religion needed to uphold ethical behaviour?

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