Have you ever wondered where the idea of God came from? Why certain religions have survived while others have not? Or whether or not religious beliefs have a direct impact to the betterment of our society?
There are three main religions on Earth; Christianity, Islam and Hinduism. Together, those three religions envelop about 70% of the world’s population. Even in an era of so much technological and scientific innovation (we recently saw a black hole for the first time), religion remains a very important part of the fabric of our society. But why?
Dr. Azim Shariff of the University of British Columbia claims religion was introduced as a way to help us bridge the gap between how we inherently had grown to deal with people in small groups, to the need of having to cooperate with anonymous people in much larger communities.
He argues that in small groups of people, around 50, where everyone knows each other, we are wired genetically to be able to cooperate with each other. In small numbers, the group, through close relationships, knows the actions of the individual members. This closeness allows for reputations a build.
However, as a group grows, more than 150 people, humans simply cannot keep up with the added complexities and relationships. As groups grow, more and more of its members become anonymous and reputation tends to lose its value. In turn, unchecked, members will free-ride on the back of others. If this happens, the group or community cannot sustain itself. It requires a certain level of cooperation in order to survive and continue to grow.
Dr. Shariff explains religion was the result of a cultural innovation which emerged about 12,000 years ago. This innovation was needed in order for these growing groups, more than 1000 people, to maintain control and trust amongst its members. Making sure individuals worked towards the overall interests of the group required the introduction of an all-powerful being, God. God was introduced to make sure people feared its punishment if any one member didn’t align themselves with the group.
By sharing a common religion, two completely anonymous tradesmen, could trust on each other to be reliable and not cheat. Suddenly, you could trade not only with people you knew, but also with people you had never met, as long as they shared a common belief system. Hence religions have various customs which can help people identify themselves amongst others.
I encourage you to listen to the full episode. Whether you are religious, atheist, agnostic or other, you will find something interesting.
