Scientists have established a link between brain damage and religious fundamentalism

[TheProgressivePatriot]

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/03/scientists-established-link-brain-damage-religious-fundamentalism/

Let me be clear. I am in no way saying that religious people are neurologically impaired and, this is in no way intended to disparage religion or the religious. However, what is being said here is that there is a link between brain functioning and religious extremism whether it be Christians, Muslims or anyone else.

Let us begin:

A study published in the journal Neuropsychologia has shown that religious fundamentalism is, in part, the result of a functional impairment in a brain region known as the prefrontal cortex. The findings suggest that damage to particular areas of the prefrontal cortex indirectly promotes religious fundamentalism by diminishing cognitive flexibility and openness—a psychology term that describes a personality trait which involves dimensions like curiosity, creativity, and open-mindedness.

Here is a link to the abstract https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28392301

We continue:

Religious beliefs can be thought of as socially transmitted mental representations that consist of supernatural events and entities assumed to be real. Religious beliefs differ from empirical beliefs, which are based on how the world appears to be and are updated as new evidence accumulates or when new theories with better predictive power emerge. On the other hand, religious beliefs are not usually updated in response to new evidence or scientific explanations, and are therefore strongly associated with conservatism. They are fixed and rigid, which helps promote predictability and coherence to the rules of society among individuals within the group.

There is much more that all should read. It should also be not that the idea of a neuropsychological component to religious furor is nothing new.

https://www.skepticink.com/gps/2015/04/03/albert-ellis-and-the-case-against-religion/


Ellis wrote, and it resonates with me:

In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding.

He goes on……

Democracy, permissiveness, and the acceptance of human fallibility are quite alien to the real religionist—since he can only believe that the creeds and commands of his particular deity should, ought, and must be obeyed, and that anyone who disobeys the is patently a knave.

and

Religion, then, by setting up absolute, god-given standards, must make you self-deprecating and dehumanized when you err; and must lead you to despise and dehumanize others when they act badly. This kind of absolutistic, perfectionistic thinking is the prime creator of the two most corroding of human emotions: anxiety and hostility.

This all explains a lot!!

You misspelled militant atheism.

Who are the militant Atheists ? Atheists are generally . pretty laid back folks

Go to your bathroom. Open the door. Walk in. Look into the mirror. The person staring back at you would be one of them.

That is based on what that I have presented? EXACTLY?

 

[TheProgressivePatriot]

Oh man I just never get tired of Liberal "studies" whose professors start with the conclusion they want and work backwards from there to support their beliefs. Now that's science.

It started with a conclusion? Please explain.

 

[TheProgressivePatriot]

I've been seeing references to a study that states almost the exact opposite of the OP's.

By shutting down the threat-processing centre of the brain, scientists weakened people's faith in God and made them less prejudiced

Maybe I'm missing something here but it seems like this is more consistent with what I posted than opposite. Less faith in God+ Less prejudice.

Disabling parts of the brain with magnets turns people into leftists.

Right! It makes them less rigged, more open to ideas, less fearful and smarter

 

[impuretrash]

I've been seeing references to a study that states almost the exact opposite of the OP's.

By shutting down the threat-processing centre of the brain, scientists weakened people's faith in God and made them less prejudiced

Maybe I'm missing something here but it seems like this is more consistent with what I posted than opposite. Less faith in God+ Less prejudice.

Disabling parts of the brain with magnets turns people into leftists.

Right! It makes them less rigged, more open to ideas, less fearful and smarter

There's plenty of perfectly valid reasons to be wary of mass immigration from Muslim countries.

 

[TheProgressivePatriot]

I've been seeing references to a study that states almost the exact opposite of the OP's.

By shutting down the threat-processing centre of the brain, scientists weakened people's faith in God and made them less prejudiced

Maybe I'm missing something here but it seems like this is more consistent with what I posted than opposite. Less faith in God+ Less prejudice.

Disabling parts of the brain with magnets turns people into leftists.

Right! It makes them less rigged, more open to ideas, less fearful and smarter

There's plenty of perfectly valid reasons to be wary of mass immigration from Muslim countries.

Being wary is one thing. Having irrational fear and prejudice is quite another. That statement on your part indicates to me that you are among those who are too close minded, fearful and ridged to see the difference.. What happened to your head?

 

[IsaacNewton]

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/03/scientists-established-link-brain-damage-religious-fundamentalism/

Let me be clear. I am in no way saying that religious people are neurologically impaired and, this is in no way intended to disparage religion or the religious. However, what is being said here is that there is a link between brain functioning and religious extremism whether it be Christians, Muslims or anyone else.

Let us begin:

A study published in the journal Neuropsychologia has shown that religious fundamentalism is, in part, the result of a functional impairment in a brain region known as the prefrontal cortex. The findings suggest that damage to particular areas of the prefrontal cortex indirectly promotes religious fundamentalism by diminishing cognitive flexibility and openness—a psychology term that describes a personality trait which involves dimensions like curiosity, creativity, and open-mindedness.

Here is a link to the abstract https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28392301

We continue:

Religious beliefs can be thought of as socially transmitted mental representations that consist of supernatural events and entities assumed to be real. Religious beliefs differ from empirical beliefs, which are based on how the world appears to be and are updated as new evidence accumulates or when new theories with better predictive power emerge. On the other hand, religious beliefs are not usually updated in response to new evidence or scientific explanations, and are therefore strongly associated with conservatism. They are fixed and rigid, which helps promote predictability and coherence to the rules of society among individuals within the group.

There is much more that all should read. It should also be not that the idea of a neuropsychological component to religious furor is nothing new.

https://www.skepticink.com/gps/2015/04/03/albert-ellis-and-the-case-against-religion/


Ellis wrote, and it resonates with me:

In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding.

He goes on……

Democracy, permissiveness, and the acceptance of human fallibility are quite alien to the real religionist—since he can only believe that the creeds and commands of his particular deity should, ought, and must be obeyed, and that anyone who disobeys the is patently a knave.

and

Religion, then, by setting up absolute, god-given standards, must make you self-deprecating and dehumanized when you err; and must lead you to despise and dehumanize others when they act badly. This kind of absolutistic, perfectionistic thinking is the prime creator of the two most corroding of human emotions: anxiety and hostility.

This all explains a lot!!

I think it a good point that the link is made between religious fundamentalism and brain damage. And to some extent it lets these people off the hook a bit, they have a physical abnormality that causes them to think and do the things that they do. Of course it then becomes the job of the rest of society to not take these groups seriously in public discourse or allow them to gain political power. Both of these are fails in the US where fundamentalism is ravenous for real political power over other people and many times attains that power. The founders saw this type of religious fanaticism in Europe for the centuries leading up to the creation of the US and they did their best to code a separation of church and state into US governance. The results are murky at best.

Right now we have a mentally challenged dangerous crazy in the White House because the fundamentalists threw out their 'morality' entirely and sided with this man who is one of the most immoral people we've ever seen run for office.

And the kicker as it always is, is that they have an excuse for all that they do, that somehow it is their 'god's will' for this cretin to be in power. Brain damage would explain it very well.

 

[TheProgressivePatriot]

"In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding."

As I mentioned earlier, I am Christian.

Aside from weddings and funerals, I haven't been in a church in over forty years. I don't do any human's bidding in matters of faith.

Your study reached a false conclusion.

Do you consider your self a fundamentalist? Maybe I wasn't talking about you.

 

[ding]

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/03/scientists-established-link-brain-damage-religious-fundamentalism/

Let me be clear. I am in no way saying that religious people are neurologically impaired and, this is in no way intended to disparage religion or the religious. However, what is being said here is that there is a link between brain functioning and religious extremism whether it be Christians, Muslims or anyone else.

Let us begin:

A study published in the journal Neuropsychologia has shown that religious fundamentalism is, in part, the result of a functional impairment in a brain region known as the prefrontal cortex. The findings suggest that damage to particular areas of the prefrontal cortex indirectly promotes religious fundamentalism by diminishing cognitive flexibility and openness—a psychology term that describes a personality trait which involves dimensions like curiosity, creativity, and open-mindedness.

Here is a link to the abstract https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28392301

We continue:

Religious beliefs can be thought of as socially transmitted mental representations that consist of supernatural events and entities assumed to be real. Religious beliefs differ from empirical beliefs, which are based on how the world appears to be and are updated as new evidence accumulates or when new theories with better predictive power emerge. On the other hand, religious beliefs are not usually updated in response to new evidence or scientific explanations, and are therefore strongly associated with conservatism. They are fixed and rigid, which helps promote predictability and coherence to the rules of society among individuals within the group.

There is much more that all should read. It should also be not that the idea of a neuropsychological component to religious furor is nothing new.

https://www.skepticink.com/gps/2015/04/03/albert-ellis-and-the-case-against-religion/


Ellis wrote, and it resonates with me:

In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding.

He goes on……

Democracy, permissiveness, and the acceptance of human fallibility are quite alien to the real religionist—since he can only believe that the creeds and commands of his particular deity should, ought, and must be obeyed, and that anyone who disobeys the is patently a knave.

and

Religion, then, by setting up absolute, god-given standards, must make you self-deprecating and dehumanized when you err; and must lead you to despise and dehumanize others when they act badly. This kind of absolutistic, perfectionistic thinking is the prime creator of the two most corroding of human emotions: anxiety and hostility.

This all explains a lot!!

You misspelled militant atheism.

Who are the militant Atheists ? Atheists are generally . pretty laid back folks

Go to your bathroom. Open the door. Walk in. Look into the mirror. The person staring back at you would be one of them.

That is based on what that I have presented? EXACTLY?

More like "your" body of work.

 

[saveliberty]

Refute the findings then

Open mindedness is part of faith. How can that be damaged in a person of faith? It is right there in your study.

 

[saveliberty]

Do you consider your self a fundamentalist? Maybe I wasn't talking about you.

Maybe? You are unsure then. Yet you felt compelled to make a thread, interesting. Just how far does your thought process go normally?

 

[Dr Grump]

"In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding."

As I mentioned earlier, I am Christian.

Aside from weddings and funerals, I haven't been in a church in over forty years. I don't do any human's bidding in matters of faith.

Your study reached a false conclusion.

You don't sound like a fundamentalist. That is who the study is aimed at. Not the run of the mill religious person.

 

[Dr Grump]

https://www.rawstory.com/2018/03/scientists-established-link-brain-damage-religious-fundamentalism/

Let me be clear. I am in no way saying that religious people are neurologically impaired and, this is in no way intended to disparage religion or the religious. However, what is being said here is that there is a link between brain functioning and religious extremism whether it be Christians, Muslims or anyone else.

Let us begin:

A study published in the journal Neuropsychologia has shown that religious fundamentalism is, in part, the result of a functional impairment in a brain region known as the prefrontal cortex. The findings suggest that damage to particular areas of the prefrontal cortex indirectly promotes religious fundamentalism by diminishing cognitive flexibility and openness—a psychology term that describes a personality trait which involves dimensions like curiosity, creativity, and open-mindedness.

Here is a link to the abstract https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28392301

We continue:

Religious beliefs can be thought of as socially transmitted mental representations that consist of supernatural events and entities assumed to be real. Religious beliefs differ from empirical beliefs, which are based on how the world appears to be and are updated as new evidence accumulates or when new theories with better predictive power emerge. On the other hand, religious beliefs are not usually updated in response to new evidence or scientific explanations, and are therefore strongly associated with conservatism. They are fixed and rigid, which helps promote predictability and coherence to the rules of society among individuals within the group.

There is much more that all should read. It should also be not that the idea of a neuropsychological component to religious furor is nothing new.

https://www.skepticink.com/gps/2015/04/03/albert-ellis-and-the-case-against-religion/


Ellis wrote, and it resonates with me:

In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding.

He goes on……

Democracy, permissiveness, and the acceptance of human fallibility are quite alien to the real religionist—since he can only believe that the creeds and commands of his particular deity should, ought, and must be obeyed, and that anyone who disobeys the is patently a knave.

and

Religion, then, by setting up absolute, god-given standards, must make you self-deprecating and dehumanized when you err; and must lead you to despise and dehumanize others when they act badly. This kind of absolutistic, perfectionistic thinking is the prime creator of the two most corroding of human emotions: anxiety and hostility.

This all explains a lot!!

You misspelled militant atheism.

Who are the militant Atheists ? Atheists are generally . pretty laid back folks

Bear in mind you are talking about fundamentalists, not run of the mill folk who have a belief. Ding fits into the former in spades. Thread after thread of fundamentalist hogwash is his game.

 

[saveliberty]

"In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding."

As I mentioned earlier, I am Christian.

Aside from weddings and funerals, I haven't been in a church in over forty years. I don't do any human's bidding in matters of faith.

Your study reached a false conclusion.

You don't sound like a fundamentalist. That is who the study is aimed at. Not the run of the mill religious person.

You mean extremist, not fundamentalist dimwit.

 

[undertherqadar]

Oh man I just never get tired of Liberal "studies" whose professors start with the conclusion they want and work backwards from there to support their beliefs. Now that's science.

You just defined how religious fundamentalists think

 

[TheProgressivePatriot]

"In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding."

As I mentioned earlier, I am Christian.

Aside from weddings and funerals, I haven't been in a church in over forty years. I don't do any human's bidding in matters of faith.

Your study reached a false conclusion.

You don't sound like a fundamentalist. That is who the study is aimed at. Not the run of the mill religious person.

You mean extremist, not fundamentalist dimwit.

Whats the difference?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Billy_Kinetta]

"In a sense, the religious person must have no real views of his own; and it is presumptuous of him, in fact, to have any. In regard to sex-love affairs, to marriage and family relations, to business, to politics, and to virtually everything else that is important in his life, he must try to discover what his god and his clergy would like him to do; and he must primarily do their bidding."

As I mentioned earlier, I am Christian.

Aside from weddings and funerals, I haven't been in a church in over forty years. I don't do any human's bidding in matters of faith.

Your study reached a false conclusion.

You don't sound like a fundamentalist. That is who the study is aimed at. Not the run of the mill religious person.

I am not a run of the mill religious person.

 

[Bob Blaylock]

I've been seeing references to a study that states almost the exact opposite of the OP's.

By shutting down the threat-processing centre of the brain, scientists weakened people's faith in God and made them less prejudiced

Oddly, it seems I've been revisiting one of TheRegressivePervert's old threads a lot, recently, to show just how f•••ed up his worldview is. Your post, here, reminds me of apart of the OP of that thread that I've lately quoted several times.

Scenario: We are contacted by an alien life form-far more wise and advanced than we- and offered the chance to achieve universal peace and prosperity, if we agree to a few conditions. …
The conditions:
1.All religious expression and thought of religion-yes thought- will be abolished. They have developed a drug to cleanse the mind of all such primitive thought patterns which, they know, causes so much strife in our world. Houses of worship will become centers for performing arts, or museums funded by the government. Some will be converted to housing.

There it is, that same element; the desire to eliminate, or at least weaken, religious faith, through mind control. Disturbing enough to read it as part of TheRegressiveParasite's bizarre dystopian fantasies; more disturbing still to find real-life mad scientists tinkering with such methods of messing with people's minds and beliefs.

 

[Dr Grump]

I am not a run of the mill religious person.

Good for you

 

[Dr Grump]

[

You mean extremist, not fundamentalist dimwit.

An extremist is a fundamentalist IMO...and vice versa...

 

[Bob Blaylock]

Disabling parts of the brain with magnets turns people into leftists.

Well, it pushes them a bit in that direction, anyway. To truly turn a sane person fully into a leftist would require doing much deeper, more severe, and more permanent damage to the brain than what these scientists appear to be doing.