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Belief in all-knowing, punitive gods aided the growth of human societies, study says
Los Angeles Times ^ | 2/10/2016 | Amina Khan, cheap labor reporter

Posted on 02/11/2016 12:45:38 PM PST by Reeses

Belief in moral-watching, all-knowing, punitive gods might have helped human societies grow far beyond small, close-knit groups, a new study shows. Researchers who ran an experiment with a total of 591 people in eight different small-scale societies around the world found that people who believed their deity of choice knew about their misdeeds and would punish them were more likely to play fairly in a game where money was on the line.

The findings, described in the journal Nature, hint at the integral role that certain religious beliefs may have played in the dramatic expansion of human societies.

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...


TOPICS: Religion; Science
KEYWORDS: aminakhan; california; epa; faithandphilosophy; globalwarminghoax; godsgravesglyphs; losangeles; losangelesslimes; losangelestimes; popefrancis; romancatholicism; shariah
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To: SunkenCiv

Tough sledding. Textual analysis vs peyote buttons...


21 posted on 02/11/2016 5:52:22 PM PST by ameribbean expat
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To: IronJack

Well, today’s Islamic and socialist worlds: 52 million US abortions, 63 million Chinese killed under Mao, 32 million Russians killed under Stalin, 6 million jews + 4 million others killed under Hitler, 3 million Cambodians, 2 million Vietnamese, 4-12 million Africans killed since the 1970’s ...

have I forgotten anyone?

Oh. 4 arrested wire-tapping the Watergate hotel under Nixon.


22 posted on 02/11/2016 7:22:14 PM PST by Robert A Cook PE (I can only donate monthly, but socialists' ABBCNNBCBS continue to lie every day!)
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To: Reeses
I'm pretty sure the Neanderthals had some religion. They did bury their dead with care and ceremonial objects after all. Whether there was a sense of morality or final judgement we may never know.
23 posted on 02/11/2016 8:15:13 PM PST by To Hell With Poverty (Tan Hairpiece Eminent Domain Trump Curse Word French Poodle Forgot To Put Toilet Seat Down)
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To: Reeses
Amina Khan, cheap labor reporter

Heh.

24 posted on 02/11/2016 8:16:27 PM PST by To Hell With Poverty (Tan Hairpiece Eminent Domain Trump Curse Word French Poodle Forgot To Put Toilet Seat Down)
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To: Reeses; SunkenCiv; All

There is some evidence that Neanderthals may also have had beliefs that could be interpreted as being of a religious or spiritual nature.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleolithic_religion


25 posted on 02/11/2016 9:04:01 PM PST by gleeaikin
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To: gleeaikin

Yup — although that idea has been fought tooth and nail by the Replacement model/master race / unreconstructed Darwinian idiots of G.B.


26 posted on 02/11/2016 11:26:05 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Here's to the day the forensics people scrape what's left of Putin off the ceiling of his limo.)
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To: ameribbean expat

:’)


27 posted on 02/11/2016 11:55:40 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Here's to the day the forensics people scrape what's left of Putin off the ceiling of his limo.)
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To: Reeses

It all depends on which diety you worship. There’s really only two, and one of them is not Eternal, hence, not God.


28 posted on 02/12/2016 6:18:04 AM PST by chesley (Obama -- Muslim or dhimmi? And does it matter?)
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To: IronJack

then they reach the “omega” of their society. Tha’s what.


29 posted on 02/12/2016 6:25:37 AM PST by chesley (Obama -- Muslim or dhimmi? And does it matter?)
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To: rarestia; Reeses

Rarestia: “...Democrats are doing everything in their power to destroy God and replace the controlling mechanism with ‘the State.’ “

If you listen carefully, you’ll notice that Dems are totally happy to put God to work supporting **their** agenda, even when that means perverting the Word’s original intent.


30 posted on 02/12/2016 11:26:37 AM PST by BroJoeK (a little historical perspective...)
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To: SunkenCiv

George Bush or something else?


31 posted on 02/12/2016 11:53:29 AM PST by gleeaikin
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To: gleeaikin

Great Britain.


32 posted on 02/12/2016 12:08:19 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Here's to the day the forensics people scrape what's left of Putin off the ceiling of his limo.)
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let’s get this party started:

History shows that atheism is as natural to humans as religion
http://www.pasthorizonspr.com/index.php/archives/02/2016/history-shows-that-atheism-is-as-natural-to-humans-as-religion


33 posted on 02/18/2016 2:56:19 AM PST by SunkenCiv (Here's to the day the forensics people scrape what's left of Putin off the ceiling of his limo.)
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