This thread is somewhat similar to at least two others we have had but this is the first time I realized that the science had a name.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/ww2/A933635
Neurotheologists have found that spiritual experiences of people, from Tibetan monks3, to Franciscan nuns have certain things in common. It would seem that prayer and meditation produce very similar results, both as described by the people experiencing them, and in the brains of volunteers as viewed by neurobiologists. Such experiences are very often described in terms that blur the lines between self and 'not-self'; people describe how they are at one with the world or universe, that they no longer existed as separate entities. They also describe how they feel the presence of God, how they are at one with Him, how they hear His voice. They even feel absorbed into His being, or His being permeating theirs. They experience timelessness, infinity, centring, quieting, nothingness, and out-of-body experiences. Can all of this really be described and witnessed using a glorified X-ray machine which tracks blood around your head? Strangely enough, yes...
'Religious' or 'spiritual' experiences are ubiquitous amongst all peoples. This phenomenon must have a common underlying cause. The question remains; is neurotheology directly witnessing how people tap into the divine, a common truth that people throughout the ages have discovered time and time again? Or, has neurotheology found common biological structures in the brain that unwittingly generate 'spiritual' experiences, which are interpreted by the individual through the lens of their religion? Whatever the answer, neurotheology has made leaps and bounds in understanding just where and what shape the 'God-shaped hole' is within the heads of human beings and what role certain areas of the brain plays in religious and spiritual belief.
When faced with requests to prove their claims that there is a god theists usually and eventually give up on attempts at showing physical evidence and instead insist that God reveals himself at a personal level and all that one has to do to acquire this evidence is to genuinely believe and open yourself to God in prayer and he will willingly reveal himself. That such people then experience warm, pleasant, fuzzy feelings that convince them that God is present, seem to be very real. But I achieve the same through meditation except I don’t call it God but stress relief instead.
If I can use a helmet that generates a field that gives the same effect or if I can take a pill that also does the same, or if I simply meditate, then when we compare the fantastic claims of a God capable of creating the universe that causes these effects with this now revealed very mundane feature of the human brain, then, well…the conclusion seems something of a no-brainer (pun intended for the benefit of believers).
When we consider that there is no physical evidence for the existence of God and now we know that the brain can produce the alleged ‘personal’ evidence by itself, then can there be any real doubt that God simply is pure fiction? The theists simply have no basis remaining for their claims.
Perhaps very soon instead of real religions if people want a spiritual experience on demand they can put on a headset and have religion parties with others. Of course many already use recreational drugs and do the same thing. In a real sense believers appear to be no more than pleasure addicts.
But seriously, what is left of the theist claim of personal evidence when we can see it is simply self induced?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/ww2/A933635
Neurotheologists have found that spiritual experiences of people, from Tibetan monks3, to Franciscan nuns have certain things in common. It would seem that prayer and meditation produce very similar results, both as described by the people experiencing them, and in the brains of volunteers as viewed by neurobiologists. Such experiences are very often described in terms that blur the lines between self and 'not-self'; people describe how they are at one with the world or universe, that they no longer existed as separate entities. They also describe how they feel the presence of God, how they are at one with Him, how they hear His voice. They even feel absorbed into His being, or His being permeating theirs. They experience timelessness, infinity, centring, quieting, nothingness, and out-of-body experiences. Can all of this really be described and witnessed using a glorified X-ray machine which tracks blood around your head? Strangely enough, yes...
'Religious' or 'spiritual' experiences are ubiquitous amongst all peoples. This phenomenon must have a common underlying cause. The question remains; is neurotheology directly witnessing how people tap into the divine, a common truth that people throughout the ages have discovered time and time again? Or, has neurotheology found common biological structures in the brain that unwittingly generate 'spiritual' experiences, which are interpreted by the individual through the lens of their religion? Whatever the answer, neurotheology has made leaps and bounds in understanding just where and what shape the 'God-shaped hole' is within the heads of human beings and what role certain areas of the brain plays in religious and spiritual belief.
When faced with requests to prove their claims that there is a god theists usually and eventually give up on attempts at showing physical evidence and instead insist that God reveals himself at a personal level and all that one has to do to acquire this evidence is to genuinely believe and open yourself to God in prayer and he will willingly reveal himself. That such people then experience warm, pleasant, fuzzy feelings that convince them that God is present, seem to be very real. But I achieve the same through meditation except I don’t call it God but stress relief instead.
If I can use a helmet that generates a field that gives the same effect or if I can take a pill that also does the same, or if I simply meditate, then when we compare the fantastic claims of a God capable of creating the universe that causes these effects with this now revealed very mundane feature of the human brain, then, well…the conclusion seems something of a no-brainer (pun intended for the benefit of believers).
When we consider that there is no physical evidence for the existence of God and now we know that the brain can produce the alleged ‘personal’ evidence by itself, then can there be any real doubt that God simply is pure fiction? The theists simply have no basis remaining for their claims.
Perhaps very soon instead of real religions if people want a spiritual experience on demand they can put on a headset and have religion parties with others. Of course many already use recreational drugs and do the same thing. In a real sense believers appear to be no more than pleasure addicts.
But seriously, what is left of the theist claim of personal evidence when we can see it is simply self induced?
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