Evolution of Religion
Religion evolved
for somewhat different functions than it serves today.
A
Basic Function in Reducing Anxiety
Religion
evidently functions as a mechanism for dealing with unpleasant emotions
associated with difficult life experiences, such as danger, bereavement,
disappointment, disease. So it is most useful when life is most difficult, as
in disease-ravaged poverty-stricken sub-Saharan Africa and least useful when
life is good, as is true of social democracies in Europe.
This
perspective helps explain the emergence of religious beliefs around the world
as well as their current decline in developed countries Yet it is not
comprehensive. Among the many functions commonly attributed to modern
religions, some of the key ones follow:
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Gives mythical context, purpose, or sense of meaning to people’s lives.
-
Provides political organization as illustrated by Islamic republic’s or the
Civil Rights movement of African Americans.
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Organizes charities and social clubs, runs schools, hospitals, and hostels.
-
Is a source for legal and ethical mores as illustrated by Sharia law or the Ten
Commandments.
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Dictates social responsibilities and supports family life.
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Specifies food customs, Sabbath observance, holiday celebrations, purification
rituals, styles of acceptable dress, etc.
It
seems unlikely that religion first arose to address any of these problems.
Important though they are, all are recent social functions of more complex
societies. Thus the moral function of religion
emerged in the more complex societies following the Agricultural Revolution When
religion first evolved, it likely emerged because of the Darwinian advantages
to individuals at a time when these complex social functions were mostly
irrelevant.
So
how did early religions help our ancestors to cheat death or raise more
offspring? As to survival: religious practices can reduce stress thereby improving health and helping people live longer
healthier lives .
What
about reproductive success? Successful modern religions promote family life and
encourage fertility. Whether they would have had the same consequences in the
remote past is less clear.
More
religious people do produce larger families .In part, that is because they
stick with practices that less religious people have abandoned. They are more
likely to get married, for example, and women are more likely to be full time
homemakers. Conservative religious people are less likely to use effective
modern birth control methods.
The tone of most religions is, and always has been,
pro-family and pro-childbearing because the reproductive success of members
translates into the success of the religion by swelling congregations Conversely,
religions that reject sexuality and reduce fertility, such as the
Shakers, steadily lose members and die out – a clear case of natural selection
at work.
Whether
religion affected fertility amongst hunter-gatherers is difficult to say.
Indigenous people are generally not religious zealots but none are completely
lacking in religiosity either.
Indeed, religious rituals are inseparable from other aspects of their daily
lives. So it is virtually impossible to know whether religious practices have
any impact on fertility independently of other aspects of the forager
lifestyle. The case for fertility enhancement by religion is thus far weaker
for ancestral humans than it is for modern people. Fertility enhancement is not
a compelling explanation for the emergence of religion amongst our forager
ancestors. So what about the alternative view that religion evolved because it
helped our ancestors to deal with psychological stress thus favoring health and
longevity?
Religion as Stress
Reduction
The
stress theory of religion is well illustrated by Malinowski's research on
protective rituals performed by Trobriand Islanders before going fishing .These
rituals were performed only before venturing into rough waters outside the
reefs, and never before fishing in the calm waters of the lagoon.
Research
shows that religious rituals (and secular meditation) reduce physiological
arousal that is thought to provide health benefits such as reduced blood pressure.
The magnitude of any such health benefit is a matter of ongoing controversy
with different studies showing benefits that range from very large to nothing
Even
if the health benefits are negligible, religious rituals can be maintained if
they help people to feel better about their lives. By analogy, people who feel
badly about their lives often purchase a lottery ticket to improve their mood.
Objectively, this seems like a waste of money but it works well enough at at an
emotional level that playing the lottery is actually addictive
Not
all rituals are calming, either, and some involve pain or self-denial.
Religious services may frighten children with the threat of hellfire in an
afterlife, presumably in an effort to induce moral behavior. In societies that
practice witchcraft, there is a constant fear of malicious spells but such problems
may reflect conflict amongst clans. Such supernatural conflict may be less
costly than physical aggression.
On
balance, it seems reasonable to assume that religious rituals and associated
beliefs helped people to confront the ever-present anxieties of living in a
dangerous and uncertain world, making for greater equanimity in the face of
misfortunes, and improved health. This is the only function of religion that
can account for its emergence amongst our foraging ancestors. People in
affluent societies may abandon religion if they obtain stress reduction
through other means – secular yoga, gyms, sports, secular
organizations, meditation, escapist entertainment, psychotherapy, alcohol,
prescription drugs, etc.
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