The Central Characteristic of Religiosity Is Integration into a Moral Community, not Supernaturalism
Commentary on Beit-Hallahmi (2020)
In: Secular StudiesSearch for other papers by Kevin McCaffree in
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Abstract
Researchers often define religion according to the presence (vs. absence) of supernaturalism. This has several serious shortcomings: (1) it construes religion narrowly as a historical/anthropological phenomenon, (2) it ignores the underlying evolved cognitive mechanisms facilitating tight group membership, which operate regardless of belief content and (3) it ensures that the study of religion will be obsolete if secularization continues. Instead of a slavish adherence to the criteria of supernaturalism, I suggest here a broader and more evolutionarily-informed definition of religion (and secularity): religion is what emerges when individuals become highly (perhaps overly-) integrated into a moral community; secularity is what emerges when individuals are moderately (perhaps under-) integrated into a moral community.
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The Central Characteristic of Religiosity Is Integration into a Moral Community, not Supernaturalism
Commentary on Beit-Hallahmi (2020)
In: Secular StudiesSearch for other papers by Kevin McCaffree in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Abstract
Researchers often define religion according to the presence (vs. absence) of supernaturalism. This has several serious shortcomings: (1) it construes religion narrowly as a historical/anthropological phenomenon, (2) it ignores the underlying evolved cognitive mechanisms facilitating tight group membership, which operate regardless of belief content and (3) it ensures that the study of religion will be obsolete if secularization continues. Instead of a slavish adherence to the criteria of supernaturalism, I suggest here a broader and more evolutionarily-informed definition of religion (and secularity): religion is what emerges when individuals become highly (perhaps overly-) integrated into a moral community; secularity is what emerges when individuals are moderately (perhaps under-) integrated into a moral community.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 344 | 54 | 4 |
| Full Text Views | 99 | 2 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 108 | 6 | 0 |
