Book Notes - Dawkins
The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
James Madison: "During almost 15 centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What has been it's fruits? More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity; in both, superstition, bigotry, and persecution"
An evolutionary explanation for the human predisposition toward religion: "More than any other species, we survive by the accumulated experience of previous generations, and that experience needs to be passed on to children for their protection and well being." Transmission of experience is made more efficient by faithful obedience, but faithful obedience makes human vulnerable to malicious memes (mind viruses).
Interesting discussion of the Cargo Cults of the South Pacific, in which natives tried to mimic the odd behaviors of white men in the belief that these behaviors were religious rituals which elicited ship cargos of magical supplies from the gods. The cargo cults even included a Christ-like figure that would return, ending the world and providing abundant cargo for all the natives.
"With or without [religion] you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, it takes religion" -- Steven Weinberg
To call bin Laden 'evil is to evade our responsibility to give a proper answer -- why did nineteen middle-class men trade their lives in this world for the privilege of killing thousands of our neighbors? Because they believed they would go straight to paradise for doing so. It is rare to find behavior of humans so fully and satisfactorily explained. Why have we been so reluctant to accept this explanation?
The terrorists perceive their acts to be good not because of some warped personal idiosyncrasy, and not because they have been possessed by Satan, but because they have been brought up from the cradle, to have total and unquestioning faith.
If hell was plausible, it would only have to be moderately unpleasant in order to deter.
Why don't faithful visitors at [a dying woman's] bedside shower her with messages for those who have gone before? 'Do give me love to Uncle Robert when you see him. . .
There is something infantile in the presumption that somebody else has a responsibility to give your life meaning and point. . .Somebody else most be responsible for my well being and somebody else must be responsible in I am hurt.
Everytime you drink a glass of water, the odds are good that you will imbibe at least one molecule that passed through the bladder of Oliver Cromwell
James Madison: "During almost 15 centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What has been it's fruits? More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity; in both, superstition, bigotry, and persecution"
An evolutionary explanation for the human predisposition toward religion: "More than any other species, we survive by the accumulated experience of previous generations, and that experience needs to be passed on to children for their protection and well being." Transmission of experience is made more efficient by faithful obedience, but faithful obedience makes human vulnerable to malicious memes (mind viruses).
Interesting discussion of the Cargo Cults of the South Pacific, in which natives tried to mimic the odd behaviors of white men in the belief that these behaviors were religious rituals which elicited ship cargos of magical supplies from the gods. The cargo cults even included a Christ-like figure that would return, ending the world and providing abundant cargo for all the natives.
"With or without [religion] you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, it takes religion" -- Steven Weinberg
To call bin Laden 'evil is to evade our responsibility to give a proper answer -- why did nineteen middle-class men trade their lives in this world for the privilege of killing thousands of our neighbors? Because they believed they would go straight to paradise for doing so. It is rare to find behavior of humans so fully and satisfactorily explained. Why have we been so reluctant to accept this explanation?
The terrorists perceive their acts to be good not because of some warped personal idiosyncrasy, and not because they have been possessed by Satan, but because they have been brought up from the cradle, to have total and unquestioning faith.
If hell was plausible, it would only have to be moderately unpleasant in order to deter.
Why don't faithful visitors at [a dying woman's] bedside shower her with messages for those who have gone before? 'Do give me love to Uncle Robert when you see him. . .
There is something infantile in the presumption that somebody else has a responsibility to give your life meaning and point. . .Somebody else most be responsible for my well being and somebody else must be responsible in I am hurt.
Everytime you drink a glass of water, the odds are good that you will imbibe at least one molecule that passed through the bladder of Oliver Cromwell
posted by Rick and Gary at 2:45 PM
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