Re:Religion, Violence, Tolerance and Progress: Nothing to Do...
by mellavora on Thursday October 22, 2020 @10:28AM
(#24858388)
Dunbar (famous for the "150 friends" rule, based on neocortex size) claims that religion is a scaling technology which allows groups to expand above the 1500 person size, which is as large as a group can get and still have most members able to recognize members by face.
Above 1500 people, a group needs a non-personal method to tag who is trustworthy and who might be plotting you harm.
Religion fills the gap nicely, gives you a reason to trust the other person. Works well, until it doesn't.
Long way of providing scientifically derived support to your statement on the "purpose" of religion.
That’s because as far as I can tell, the purpose of “religion” is to assist in tribal bonds. Even though it’s not explicitly stated, it helps serve as a proxy for people to figure how closely to align themselves with another.
When I was a child, I wondered why people who didn’t believe in the assumptions of a religion or act according to them still stated they belong to that religion or performed certain rituals and traditions relating to the religion.
I came to learn it’s because it helps serve as a signal to where your political allegiances might lie and helps manage your priorities and subtly inform others.
Non “religious” societies may have weaker tribal bonds or allegiances with each other, so in times of conflict, they may be unable to create the group dynamics that enable them to survive and/or thrive. Of course, my whole theory might be wrong and maybe there are better signals nowadays.