How come the most religious people also being the most Superstitious people???
Now I am not talking “only” about uneducated people! There are a lot of highly educated people who falls in this exact category!
Black cats crossing the street when driving, an owl howling on the roof of some ones house, breaking a mirror, open an umbrella in the house, tokelosh and lots more!
Most possibly it is the same area of the brain which handles or controls Religion and Superstition? If so, wouldn’t it proof to religious people, that religion and superstition are actually the same thing only different versions?
What is your opinion?
I suppose both religion and superstition have their roots in credulity, as both involve faith in the unknowable or untestable. Credulity, in turn, is likely due to the way the brain is set up. Here is a good article by Sentinel on the topic:
http://forum.skeptic.za.org/afrikaans/die-neurologiese-bedrading-van-'n-gelowige/
This basic propensity to believe stuff may also explain why someone would sooner change between faiths than abandon faith alltogether.
Its ironic how religion sometimes warns against the evils of superstition.
Mintaka
I think that religious instruction is a way to teach people to be superstitious.
“you must pray or you will go to hell”, “eat this cracker because it is flesh” and so forth. It’s a very effective way to knock the scepticism out of somebody.
Hi Jane of the Jungle, and welcome to the forum!
Because religion is merely the most common form of superstition. Most religious people have essentially been brainwashed into their faith from the very earliest age and at the same time been told that questioning the religion is not allowed. For many people, this becomes a licence later in life to believe in silly things without questioning them in any consistent way.
That would be because no one really likes competition…
'Luthon64
Oh my fLoK :
“blush” ghee sorry, I only now, saw this terrible mistake, fixed it!
Pure pressure
Here is a good article by Sentinel on the topic:
This basic propensity to believe stuff may also explain why someone would sooner change between faiths than abandon faith alltogether.
Thanx Mintake, did read it and was very interesting 
The religion hopping you’re talking about I can’t understand myself, I can only think it is an urge for security? The idee that there is some backup when things get rough?
"you must pray or you will go to hell",
Skeptic This might well be the one and only reason why so many people are to scared to de-convert from xtianity, even though they most possibly don’t even know what a church looks like on the inside
For many people, this becomes a licence later in life to believe in silly things without questioning them in any consistent way.
Hi Luthon64, Thanx for the welcoming note :)and your reply!
I Totally forgot to mention all these people who had the privilege of ghosts sightings,
Not to mention all the “true” ghost stories we had to experience (at times when we couldn’t tell adults it sounds like BS) and today, they still swear by the bible it is true! :
If you are blessed with a lot of bandwidth, the following talk on the evolution of the brain and religion, is quite informative:
http://richarddawkins.net/article,3779,Why-We-Believe-in-Gods---American-Atheists-09,Andy-Thomson
Thanx Boogie, would definitely do so, closer to the end of the month, saving the bundle to go crazy then ;D
Its ironic how religion sometimes warns against the evils of superstition.
Religion is just organized prescriptive superstition intermixed with a few wise hints and sometimes social support(after sales service). The success of a particular religion to perpetuate is proportional to the degree in which coercion and marketing is being applied. In the latter eras product and target market played a prominent role. Superstitious beliefs from rival religions are shunned and warned against.(market rivalry)
Barryl