Show 270: The Big Religion Problems…Solved!

“The Big Religion Problems…Solved!” w/Gregory S. Paul

Audio here!

As an interesting follow-up to our October/November two-part program with Ronald Inglehart and David S. Wilson – found here and here – we will discuss with scholar Gregory S. Paul the big questions of religion (not theology) – mainly, why was religion invented, why does it still exist in the 21st century, and what is the future for the religious impulse?  A short summary of Paul’s “answers” to these questions found in his essay – Religion, the Big Questions Finally Solved (Free Inquiry; Dec. 2008/Jan. 2009) – goes as follows:

“(The threats to religion today include) the contribution by naturalistic science, socioeconomic security, and corporate-consumer culture, (all of which) combine to form the ‘Triple-Threat Hypothesis of Democratic Secularization … Religion is-a superficial, primitive, and dysfunctional condition … Religious belief and activity are-superficial coping mechanism(s) that (are) easily cast off when the majority of a given society enjoy democratic governance, and a secure, comfortable middle-class lifestyle.”

Gregory S. Paul is a paleontologist, artist and author. In 2005 he made headlines with his studies indicating that religious societies are worse off than secular ones.