Theology after the Birth of God: Atheist Conceptions in Cognition and Culture (Radical Theologies and Philosophies)

The Gods Are Born - And We Have Borne Them! This Proclamation, Derived From Insights In The Biocultural Study Of Religion, May Engender Even More Atheism Than Nietzsche's Message About The Death Of God. Engaging Recent Empirical Findings And Theoretical Developments Within A Wide Variety Of Evolutionary And Social Sciences, F. Leron Shults Unveils The Cognitive And Coalitional Mechanisms By Which God-conceptions Are Bred In Human Minds And Nurtured In Human Cultures. Shared Imaginative Engagement With Punitive Supernatural Agents Emerges Naturally As A Result Of Inherited Tendencies That Lead To The Over-detection Of Agents And The Over-protection Of In-groups. The Integration Of These Tendencies Helped Our Early Ancestors Survive By Fostering Cooperation And Commitment In Small-scale Coalitions. However, These Religious Traits Also Generate Faulty Interpretations Of Nature And Violent Inscriptions Of Society. Arguing For The Importance Of Having The Talk About Religious Reproduction, Especially In Complex, Pluralistic Environments Increasingly Shaped By Naturalism And Secularism, Shults Proposes The Liberation Of A Radically Atheist Trajectory That Has For Too Long Been Suppressed Within The Discipline Of Theology. The Gods Are Born - And We Have Borne Them -- Anthropomorphic Promiscuity And Sociographic Prudery -- The Scientific Discipline Of Theology -- Arguing About Axiological Engagement -- Religious Family Systems -- Letting Gods Go : Naturalism And Secularism -- Postpartum Theology. F. Leron Shults. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "A sophisticated and significant exploration of the implications of the biocultural study of religion; important not only for theologians and philosophers, but for all those interested in the role religion plays in the world today. With a series of entertaining metaphors, Shults guides us through the ways our evolved cognitive mechanisms both generate and constrain, in sometimes dangerous ways, our religious and anti-religious discourse. He makes a compelling case that this new paradigm is a profound game changer that no serious discussion of religion can responsibly ignore. I believe the same can be said of this book."--John Teehan, author of In the Name of God: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Ethics and Violence (2010) "Theology After the Birth of God is a valuable part of any atheist's library. Sun Tsu taught us to know our enemies; Shults teaches us that gods are not only man-made, but an inevitable byproduct of evolution. This information is devastating to the concept that gods are real, as Shults shows exactly how they are made, shaped, and used to the advantage of those in charge. He then takes the next step of teaching us how to use this information toward the betterment of society. Shults answers once and for all, how so many people can believe in a god and still be wrong."--David Silverman, President of American Atheists "Taking his point of departure in the biocultural science of religion that a few of us have been promoting, Shults shows how even theology may benefit from these insights. His proposed anthropomorphic promiscuity and sociographic prudery is a refreshing take on religion, atheism, cognition and culture."--Armin W. Geertz, author of Brain, Body and Culture: A Biocultural Theory of Religion, Director of the Religion, Cognition and Culture Research Unit (RCC) at Aarhus University, Denmark Engaging recent developments within the bio-cultural study of religion, Shults unveils the evolved cognitive and coalitional mechanisms by which god-conceptions are engendered in minds and nurtured in societies. He discovers and attempts to liberate a radically atheist trajectory that has long been suppressed within the discipline of theology. The gods are born - and we have borne them! This proclamation, derived from insights in the biocultural study of religion, may engender even more atheism than Nietzsche's message about the "death of God." Engaging recent empirical findings and theoretical developments within a wide variety of evolutionary and social sciences, F. LeRon Shults unveils the cognitive and coalitional mechanisms by which god-conceptions are bred in human minds and nurtured in human cultures. Shared imaginative engagement with punitive supernatural agents emerges "naturally" as a result of inherited tendencies that lead to the over-detection of agents and the over-protection of in-groups. The integration of these tendencies helped our early ancestors survive by fostering cooperation and commitment in small-scale coalitions. However, these "religious" traits also generate faulty interpretations of nature and violent inscriptions of society. Arguing for the importance of having "the talk" about religious reproduction, especially in complex, pluralistic environments increasingly shaped by naturalism and secularism, Shults proposes the liberation of a radically atheist trajectory that has for too long been suppressed within the discipline of theology The gods are born - and we have borne them! This proclamation, derived from insights in the biocultural study of religion, may engender even more atheism than Nietzsche's message about the "death of God." Engaging recent empirical findings and theoretical developments within a wide variety of evolutionary and social sciences, F. LeRon Shults unveils the cognitive and coalitional mechanisms by which god-conceptions are bred in human minds and nurtured in human cultures. Shared imaginative engagement with punitive supernatural agents emerges "naturally" as a result of inherited tendencies that lead to the over-detection of agents and the over-protection of in-groups. The integration of these tendencies helped our early ancestors survive by fostering cooperation and commitment in small-scale coalitions. However, these "religious" traits also generate faulty interpretations of nature and violent inscriptions of society. Arguing for the importance of having "the talk" about religious reproduction, especially in complex, pluralistic environments increasingly shaped by naturalism and secularism, Shults proposes the liberation of a radically atheist trajectory that has for too long been suppressed within the discipline of theology. Amazon.com Front Matter....Pages i-xiii The gods Are Born—and We Have Borne Them....Pages 1-16 Anthropomorphic Promiscuity and Sociographic Prudery....Pages 17-47 The Scientific Discipline of Theology....Pages 49-78 Arguing about Axiological Engagement....Pages 79-112 Religious Family Systems....Pages 113-147 Letting gods Go: Naturalism and Secularism....Pages 149-182 Postpartum Theology....Pages 183-202 Back Matter....Pages 203-238