The God gene hypothesis proposes that human spirituality is influenced by heredity and that a specific gene, called vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2), predisposes humans towards spiritual or mystic experiences.
VMAT2 encodes a transporter protein that imports several monoamine neurotransmitters into vesicles in the brain (reviewed in Zheng et al., 2006 ). Thus, an alteration in the transporter could potentially affect the levels of multiple types of neurotransmitters, resulting in altered brain function.
Overall, nearly all of the population will have a genetic predisposition toward religion, although some or many of these individuals will lead secular lives, Rowthorn concluded.
All human persons are naturally religious if by that we mean that they possess, by virtue of their given ontological being, a complex set of innate features, capacities, powers, limitations, and tendencies that capacitate them to be religious (i.e., to think, perceive, feel, imagine, desire, and act religiously), and ...
Political and religious attitudes are influenced by both environmental and genetic factors.
Their work demonstrated that approximately 40% of the variation in self-transcendence was due to genes. By contrast, specific religious beliefs (such as belief in a particular deity) were found to have no genetic basis and are instead cultural units or memes.
It is widely agreed that religion has biological foundations—that belief in the supernatural, obedience to authority or susceptibility to ceremony and ritual depend on genetically based features of the human brain [1–6].
Although my dog may stare at me like I'm a deity, there's no evidence to suggest that non-human animals have religion. They don't worship, pray or believe in gods of any kind, but they do perform ritualistic behaviours, prompting some to speculate that animals could have a spiritual side.
Believing that God has a plan helps people regain some sense of control, or at least acceptance. Another motivational factor is self-enhancement. If you live in a society where religion is prized, it's in your best interest to say you believe, whether you truly do or not.
God knows everything we are going through at this very moment and everything we will go through in the future. He knows the best way to handle every situation so we get the best possible outcome and we need to trust him with that. We need to follow his path and trust that he knows best, because he does.
Sects of some religions, such as the Druze, Yazidis, Zoroastrians, and Yarsans, do not accept converts at all.
The custodial parent's right to influence the religious upbringing of her children is considered exclusive. If the custodial parent objects to the non-custodial parent's religious activities, that's the end of it: The court will defer to the custodial parent's wishes.
But for the Bible to say that we are God's inheritance—that is almost beyond belief! God, who owns everything in the universe, is thrilled that we are his possession! Deuteronomy 32:9 repeats this incredible truth: “The Lord's portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance.”
Telomerase is thus able to extend the life-span a cell, and has been dubbed the “immortality” enzyme.
lazarus is a novel pbx gene that globally mediates hox gene function in zebrafish. Mol Cell. 2000 Aug;6(2):255-67. doi: 10.1016/s1097-2765(00)00027-7.
A sentinel gene is defined as being: a) membrane anchored on the cell surface; b) expressed on circulating leukocytes of healthy volunteers; c) have an activation mechanism dependent on proteolytic processing.
No one created God. God got created as the universe grew and changes. God is the cumulative energy of the universe. So, infact universe created God.
2 The literal definition of “atheist” is “a person who does not believe in the existence of a god or any gods,” according to Merriam-Webster.
Prehistoric evidence of religion. The exact time when humans first became religious remains unknown, however research in evolutionary archaeology shows credible evidence of religious-cum-ritualistic behavior from around the Middle Paleolithic era (45–200 thousand years ago).
Philippians 3:2: “Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.” Proverbs 26:11: “As a dog returneth to his vomit, [so] a fool returneth to his folly.” Luke 16:21: “And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.”
With the minimal research experiments that have been done, pet psychologist Marty Miller suggests dogs can sense spirits because they are able to detect slight changes in the atmosphere, which likely happens when there is a spirit or other supernatural entity present.
The dog (Shvan) is also the vahana or mount of the Hindu god Bhairava. Yudhishthira had approached heaven with his dog who was the god Yama himself, therefore among many Hindus, the common belief exists that caring for or adopting dogs can also pave the way to heaven.
One idea is that, as humans evolved from small hunter-gatherer tribes into large agrarian cultures, our ancestors needed to encourage cooperation and tolerance among relative strangers. Religion then—along with the belief in a moralizing God—was a cultural adaptation to these challenges.
Belief, whether religious or nonreligious, is associated with greater signal in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vMPFC), a brain region important for self-representation, emotional associations, reward, and goal-driven behavior.
From what we've observed, it is certainly possible [that religiosity and spirituality cause neuroprotective changes in the brain], but nowhere near certain.” On the other hand, Ferguson's lesion network mapping study suggests that changes in the brain can cause changes in religiosity and spirituality.