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Supernatural Selection Matt Rossano (Professor, Professor, Psychology, Southeastern Louisiana University)

Supernatural Selection By Matt Rossano (Professor, Professor, Psychology, Southeastern Louisiana University)

Supernatural Selection by Matt Rossano (Professor, Professor, Psychology, Southeastern Louisiana University)


$87.99
Condition - Very Good
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Summary

Author Matt J. Rossano provides an evolutionary history of religion, beginning with the social lives of our primate ancestors. This book makes the case that religion is adaptive; that it is essential to morality; that childhood imagination provides its raw materials, and that it is the very essence of what it means to be human.

Supernatural Selection Summary

Supernatural Selection: How Religion Evolved by Matt Rossano (Professor, Professor, Psychology, Southeastern Louisiana University)

In 2006, scientist Richard Dawkins published a blockbuster bestseller, The God Delusion. This atheist manifesto sparked a furious reaction from believers, who have responded with numerous books of their own. By pitting science against religion, however, this debate overlooks what science can tell us about religion. According to evolutionary psychologist Matt J. Rossano, what science reveals is that religion made us human. In Supernatural Selection, Rossano presents an evolutionary history of religion. Neither an apologist for religion nor a religion-basher, he draws together evidence from a wide range of disciplines to show the valuable--even essential--adaptive purpose served by systematic belief in the supernatural. The roots of religion stretch as far back as half a million years, when our ancestors developed the motor control to engage in social rituals--that is, to sing and dance together. Then, about 70,000 years ago, a global ecological crisis drove humanity to the edge of extinction. It forced the survivors to create new strategies for survival, and religious rituals were foremost among them. Fundamentally, Rossano writes, religion is a way for humans to relate to each other and the world around them--and, in the grim struggles of prehistory, it offered significant survival and reproductive advantages. It emerged as our ancestors' first health care system, and a critical part of that health care system was social support. Religious groups tended to be far more cohesive, which gave them a competitive advantage over non-religious groups, and enabled them to conquer the globe. Rather than focusing on one aspect of religion, as many theorists do, Rossano offers an all-encompassing approach that is rich with surprises, insights, and provocative conclusions.

Supernatural Selection Reviews

a valuable book * Bruce Buttler, Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith *

About Matt Rossano (Professor, Professor, Psychology, Southeastern Louisiana University)

Matt Rossano is head of the Psychology Department at Southeastern Louisiana University. He is the author of Evolutionary Psychology: The Science of Human Behavior and Evolution.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

Additional information

GOR006648984
9780195385816
0195385810
Supernatural Selection: How Religion Evolved by Matt Rossano (Professor, Professor, Psychology, Southeastern Louisiana University)
Used - Very Good
Hardback
Oxford University Press Inc
2010-06-17
304
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - Supernatural Selection