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| Subject: Cause of Religion: Fear of Death |
I've added a quote from M. Momen to my "The Causes of Religion: The Fear of Death" by Vexen Crabtree (2007):
Child psychologists say that 'there is no death' in the world of most childen. Others in history, such as Freud, have explained that "dealing" with the learned idea of death is one of the greatest challenges of adulthood. Many, of course, "deal" with it by imagining that death is not real. That, in fact, we somehow survive death, despite that the self is the brain, and the brain dies.
Professional sociologists and anthropologists have often wondered what causes religion, and what psychological purpose it serves. Many have also noted that the fear of death provides a reason for various religious beliefs:
“Later functionalists included the anthropologist, Bronishaw Malinowski (1884-1942). In his principal book, Magic, Science and Religion and Other Essays (1948), he wrote that social phenomenon such as religion fulfill a function in relation to human psychological needs. In the case of religion, this function is to provide psychological safeguards against the fear of death and thus give human beings the feeling of mastery over their fate.”
"The Phenomenon Of Religion" by Moojan Momen |
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