Reddit mentions of The "God" Part of the Brain: A Scientific Interpretation of Human Spirituality and God

The "God" Part of the Brain by Matthew Alper

>Is Man the product of a God...or is "God" the product of human evolution?
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>From the dawn of our species, every human culture-no matter how isolated-has believed in some form of a spiritual realm. According to author Matthew Alper, this is no mere coincidence but rather due to the fact that humans, as a species, are genetically predisposed to believe in the universal concepts of a god, a soul and an afterlife. This instinct to believe is the result of an evolutionary adaptation-a coping mechanism-that emerged in our species to help us survive our unique and otherwise debilitating awareness of death.
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>Spiritual seekers and atheists alike will be compelled and transformed by Matthew Alper's classic study of science and religion. The 'God' Part of the Brain has gained critical acclaim from some of the world's leading scientists, secular humanists, and theologians, and is as a must read for anyone who has pondered the question of God's existence, as well as the meaning of our own.

The belief in an afterlife is a coping mechanism for humans that can't accept the fact that we are born, some reproduce then we die. http://www.amazon.com/The-God-Part-Brain-Interpretation/dp/1402214529

> Those aren't decisions in a free will sense.

Decision making and "free will" are different discussions. The concept of free will could take us down a separate rabbit hole, so for now I'll say that humans, being more intelligent and living more complex lives than animals, have a vastly greater amount of options for any scenario. This gives us a sense of freedom to choose whatever we want, but we are still confined to what's physically possible or what we can imagine, and the choices we make are based on some level of reasoning.


> I'm not dismissing this.

It sounded like it when you said "Oh but you don't believe that."


> That disturbs the chemicals in our brains.

That's not too far from accurate. You can Google and find studies that show your brain can be rewired by traumatic events and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) attempts to adjust that wiring through practice. Here's one article that's related: Scientists Have Discovered How Traumatic Experiences Actually Rewire The Brain. To this point, everything you experience is because of your brain, even your concept of God. This book's a little simplistic in the beginning but the neurology part is good: The "God" Part of the Brain: A Scientific Interpretation of Human Spirituality and God


> only societies that do certain things have any chance of surviving

This argument doesn't logically follow my statement of "right and wrong is subjective". Societies fall for various reasons having nothing to do with morality; natural disasters, for one. How broadly are we using the term "societies"?

> What is Right is determined by what ultimately brings us closer to synthesis. Unity with God.

That's your opinion, which I'm open to hearing evidence or reasoning for. Which God? Everyone's concept of a god is slightly different than the next. How's that not subjective?


> morality is objective

Objectivity requires no influence by personal feelings or opinions. It implies a pure fact. If person 1 thinks killing is always wrong, person 2 thinks it's wrong unless it's for X reason, and person 3 thinks it's never wrong but can always be justified, then those are three subjective points of view. If you're saying outside of that there is an objective stance on it, how is one to know it and that it's not their own subjectivity?

I would check out The God Part of the Brain. It was fascinating to me, it explores some of the ways that humans developed a sense of god/religion/afterlife over time as we evolved.

Read another book once and a while.

Try Mathew Alpert God Part of the Brain only $25!

That little rosy feeling you get when you think of god is a chemical reaction on your brain. You can force it to happen anytime you like.

There have been ~3000 gods worshipped by humans. I only believe in one less than you do. You are almost there!! You can make it. I have faith in you!

You need to read something better then. I recommend Matt Alper's The "God" Part of the Brain for starters.

Scientific and an easy read.


Oh, and the word is "a lot" not allot... because that's not even a word. Indicative of the reading you have done... volume and content.