By Gurnam Singh | Opinion |
I have a confession to make; I am an avid YouTube watcher and a real fan of documentaries and debates on anything related to nature, being, the origin of the universe and the possibility of life on other planets. Moreover, I see myself as a rationalist in the sense that I believe that reason and logical thinking, rather than blind faith, are the primary sources of knowledge and understanding.
This doesn’t mean that I dismiss truth claims, however illogical they may seem. My response is always to look for contrary evidence and arguments in order to test those truth claims. This is not easy as we all tend to fall into the trap of confirmatory evidence. Often presented as unconscious bias, this is when we make snap judgments or assumptions about people, claims, assertions or situations without realising this to be the case. These judgements are often based on past experiences, cultural conditioning or patterns we’ve learned over time.
Turning to the issue in hand, according to most estimates, almost 80% of the world’s population expresses a belief in God in some shape or form. Even more astonishing, research consistently reports that over 50% of non-religious people believe in ghosts and spirits! This powerful statistical truth leaves one big question, why do religion and seemingly irrational beliefs in ghosts and spirits not only persist, but continue to captivate billions of people across the World?
Beyond the God of the Clouds, Mountains and Rivers
Most people, believers and non-believers alike, recognise that the popular conception of God as a bearded old man residing somewhere above the clouds, atop a mountain or in a sacred river, is a crude oversimplification. If that was all that religion had to offer, then no doubt it would by now have been consigned to the dustbin of history. What we are actually wrestling with here is a profoundly complex system of thought that has evolved and adapted overtime to enable human beings to make sense of our existence and our place in the vast universe, of unexplained phenomena, and the ultimate questions related to life and death.
Despite our immense human intelligence, and the onslaught of science and technology, especially so over the past 300 years, belief in religion, a supernatural realm and spiritual forces has endured. This isn’t a fluke; it points to a deeper, multifaceted appeal that religion and religious beliefs have on the human condition. For this reason alone, even as organised religion appears to be on the decline, it would be foolish for sceptics to underestimate the ongoing relevance of religious beliefs. This leads one to ask, how does religion continue to have such a powerful appeal despite the scarcity of scientific evidence to support any of its foundational claims? I believe there are three primary, interconnected lenses through which to understand this phenomenon: the philosophical, the psychological, and the sociological.
Philosophical & Theological Underpinnings
For many, the appeal of religion begins not with blind faith, but with fundamental questions about reality itself. Science excels at explaining how the universe works, but it often falls silent on the ultimate why question. This is where philosophical and theological arguments step in, offering a framework for ultimate meaning and causality.
Thinkers throughout history have grappled with the idea that the universe, with its intricate laws and emergent life, seems contingent. In other words, it didn’t have to exist, so why does it exist? This leads to what is known as the “Cosmological Argument”: if everything has a cause, what is the uncaused cause? What is the “Necessary Being” that underpins all of reality? Here, God is not merely a sky-bound white bearded old man, but the very basis of being, the fundamental source from which everything else flows. For those seeking a coherent answer to the universe’s origin and purpose, this philosophical argument remains profoundly compelling.
In contrast, all that cosmologists seem to be able to offer is an extremely abstract and counter intuitive idea that the Universe emerged out of ‘nothing!’ For example, the renowned theoretical physicist and cosmologist Lawrence Krauss famously asserted that, “Because gravity can create negative energy, is it possible that the total energy of the universe is zero? … If the total energy of the universe is zero, then the universe can have come from nothing.” Hence, given the choice between a meaningful universe overseen by all-powerful benevolent force and a pointless universe that came out of nothing, one should not be surprised if for most ordinary people opt for the former.
Religion and the Human Mind
Beyond grand philosophical questions, religion speaks directly to the uniquely human condition: our supreme intelligence; our capacity to contemplate our own existence; our ability to experience complex emotions; our capacity to have empathetic and ethical awareness; and our sense of our own mortality.
Our minds, it turns out, might be naturally predisposed to accommodate the supernatural. Evolutionary psychologists argue that our ancestors survived by quickly attributing or associating intent to unexplained phenomena. For example, a rustle in the bushes must be a predator, not just wind, death of a child must be due to bad spirits rather than an unknown natural cause. This adaptive trait, while crucial for survival, exposed humans to inferring agency and design where this might just be chance or an association, rather than causal, hence setting the stage for interpreting natural events as divine actions.
Perhaps more powerfully, religion offers profound existential comfort in a world where so much is not known. As noted earlier, we are the only species acutely aware of our mortality and in some senses, lack of knowledge. This awareness has its benefits, but can for many be paralysing leading to depression and worse. Religion, through concepts of an afterlife, reincarnation, heaven, or the eternal soul, provides a convincing framework to manage this terror, offering solace and meaning in the face of oblivion. It answers the deepest personal question: “What happens next?”
God as Social Glue and Economic Engine
Finally, we cannot ignore the immense social power of religion. Human beings are inherently social creatures, and religion has played an unparalleled role in organising, unifying, and shaping societies for millennia.
Consider the concept of a an all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful God who monitors moral behaviour of everybody. This belief proved incredibly effective in fostering cooperation among large groups of strangers. If a divine authority ensures justice, even if delayed, individuals are more likely to abide by shared rules, engage in fair trade, and build complex societies. In essence, God becomes a cosmic guarantor of social contracts.
From an economic perspective, religious beliefs have historically driven development. Max Weber famously argued for the “Protestant Ethic,” where the pursuit of worldly success and hard work was seen as a sign of divine favour or grace, fuelling the rise of modern capitalism. Today, religious institutions like Sikh Gurdwaras continue to provide, community support, charitable aid, and educational opportunities that underpin economic stability and collective well-being.
Where Science Falls Silent, Religion Speaks
The on-going popularity of religious belief should not be seen as a sign of human irrationality or ignorance as some radical atheists seem to suggest, but a verification of the complex nature of human consciousness, which constitutes a blend of subjective beliefs and objective realities. A closer examination of religion and religious belief reveals a dual function. It provides a functional narrative for explaining life and death. And along the way, it provides psychological comfort for our deepest anxieties. Yet beyond the self, religious belief helps to generate a set of narratives of group belonging. As the historian and science writer, Yuval Noah Harari argues in his best seller, Sapiens, human history has been largely shaped by shared myths associated with religion, clan, tribe and ultimately nations.
Even if participation in formal traditional religious practices may be waning, especially amongst younger generations, it persists in providing a powerful framework for identity formation, social cohesion, charitable activity, though on the flip side, it is also deeply implicated in all kinds of violence and suffering. In this regard, one needs to accept religion is much more than a belief in God, spirits and supernatural forces, it is a social phenomenon and irresistible force of history. In an increasingly complex world, where science is confined to “how” and “what,” but is mute on the question of “why” religion, both in its traditional form and new age spirituality, continues to offer compelling, comforting, and at times troubling answers.
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Gurnam Singh is an academic activist dedicated to human rights, liberty, equality, social and environmental justice. He is an Associate Professor of Sociology at University of Warwick, UK. He can be contacted at Gurnam.singh.1@warwick.ac.uk
* This is the opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Asia Samachar.
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Eloquent. Concise yet thorough. Also look forward to reading veer Gurnam.