the evolving mind

Religion has its costs. In time and resources. What was and perhaps is the payoff for paying the costs of religious rituals? Why do they persist?

Personal reasons may be akin to a baseball batter making the sign of the cross before each pitch slung his way. No real payoff beyond personal comfort in uncertain times, but no significant cost either. Or, in the case of millions of people buying their lottery tickets each week, while the mega-payoff never materializes, hope is a tangible feeling that apparently outweighs any doubt.

There may, however, be real social payoffs for groups of individuals. I am fully serious when I propose that part of the social payoff could be seen as a welfare program for schizotypal personalities. Tending to hear voices and finding (projecting) meaning at a pin drop–call them shaman, call them prophets, call them priests. Whether they are born that way and/or adapt to a social niche is likely a complex phenomenon.

The king contributed from his own possessions for the morning and evening burnt offerings and for the burnt offerings on the Sabbaths, New Moons and appointed feasts as written in the Law of the LORD. He ordered the people living in Jerusalem to give the portion due the priests and Levites. (2 Chronicles 31:3)

Many others have pointed out the irony of the situation. The priest asks to be supported by the community for his ability to hear the invisible leader and to speak for him. “Trust me, the great one told me to tell you to keep me housed and fed.”

Venturing now into the sphere of the less speculative (and defamatory towards the preaching class)–by engaging in ritual a person may be advertising to others a sign of loyalty. You can trust me. These are not just empty words I speak, or a way to deceive; I willingly pay the cost to advertise my value as a social cohort.

In a social group, trust and loyalty provide a strong glue. Group rituals may additionally provide opportunities for networking. Any friend of my invisible friend is a friend of mine.

Many people will differentiate between religiosity and “organized religion.” Usually they make the distinction to point out how they differ from zealots. And though I am sure there are real differences between individual religiosity and the practice of group ritual, perhaps they do overlap in their origin yet are distinctive and important to differentiate. Another time.

Community rituals may also help build and maintain alliances and provide a catalyst for teamwork. Being able to work in groups is an extremely powerful resource. Our kind excels at it like no other. Religion has proven an effective way to channel social muscle. For bad (mostly to outsiders). And for good (to group members).

Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him. (Ezra 4:2)

Notice the crucial pronoun in this verse:

And on that day they offered great sacrifices. (Nehemiah 12:43)

They.

Why is religious worship–an act that supposedly solidifies a link between an individual and a higher power–so often a community affair?

Then he said to me, “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: These will be the regulations for sacrificing burnt offerings and sprinkling blood upon the altar when it is built. (Ezekiel 43:18)

No, do not perform a sacrifice in the privacy of your backyard. Do it upon an altar. In public, before a community to witness your act. Many of the components and props for rituals–bowing down 7 times, drinking wine from a gold chalice–scream “learn this, repeat this, take it seriously.”

In my opinion, religious services are largely about displaying commitment to a cause. Is a god the cause, or just an excuse, as we find many excuses to have a party? You must get married “before the eyes of god.” God is the excuse here, the eyes that truly matter are those of the community.

Commitment. In sitcoms and perhaps real life you will hear the cliché, men are afraid to commit. To women that is a bad thing. And reasonably so if they are truly concerned about a relationship and resources that could help raise their potential offspring. Potential offspring aside, in the context of intimate relationships, what are feelings of loyalty and jealousy all about? Where do they come from? Certainly they don’t exist in a social vacuum.

Similarly, why do social rituals matter so much to us? To be wed, to take on the position of president of a country, why not just sign a contract before an attorney and declare, “done, and done”?

Why? To help keep tabs on those in our group and those without. So group members can make a costly advertisement, if possible, of their commitments to people and important resources. And why must it be costly? To dissuade frauds and cheats. So give until it hurts. If it doesn’t hurt, what are you really giving?

When you bring blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the LORD Almighty. (Malachi 1:8)

Religion: a template for authentic, team-building relationships and stable social structures?

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