Physical pain plays an important biological role, but should we expect it to in a world created by God? Also, a recent paper in the journal cognition posits distinct cognitive attitudes underlying religious belief and factual reasoning, but is the evidence from cognitive science and philosophy sufficient to support this claim?

Counter-Apologetics: Theism, indifference and the biology of pain

Pain serves an important biological purpose. Even animals who lack moral agency experience pain, and moral agents often experience gratuitous pain that serves no biological or moral purpose. Paul Draper’s paper “Pain and Pleasure: An Evidential Problem for Theists” explores the philosophical implications of these facts for theism.

Links:
The Biological Role of Pain and pleasure by Paul Draper

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God Thinks Like You: Imagination and Religious Belief

The power of imagination can make fictions seem real to us–even prompting behaviors and powerful emotions. The paradox of fiction asks how we can have such powerful reactions to what we know to be false. The journal Cognition recently featured two papers inspired by the paradox of fiction. One demonstrates how imagined events can fool our unconscious mind into believing the events are real, even when we factually know the experiences never happened. Another claims that religious beliefs are formed by cognitive processes more similar to imaginings than factual beliefs.

Links:
Religious Credence is not Factual Belief by Neil Van Leeuwen
If I Imagine it, then it Happened by Shidlovski, Schul & Mayo

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Polyatheism: The Heroic Adventures of Cú Chulainn

This polyatheism is the final instalment in a three part series on the zany adventures of the Irish mythological hero Cu Chulainn.

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Religion in the Headlines – Ebola Edition

Leo Igway on faith healers and bishop Duncan-Williams

ebola conspiracy theories are causing people to stop vaccinating

Props: National Association of Evangelicals calls for greater regulation of predatory lending.

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Many non-theists keep their doubts hidden for fear of losing friends and love ones. But remaining in the closet also has drawbacks: stress, hypocrisy, the oppression of silence and fear of being found out. Despite the risks, those who’ve made the decision to be open about their atheism almost never regret it. Luckily, doubters do not need to make this important decision on their own. Greta Christina (FTB blogger and author of Why Are You Atheists So Angry) conducted over 400 interviews with non-theists about their experiences of leaving the closet. Along the way she discovered that differing circumstances call for different coming-out strategies. Her latest book Coming Out Atheist: How to Do It, How to Help, and Why?–distills this wisdom into clear and compassionate strategies for preserving important relationships while being open about your doubts.

Links:
Order “Coming Out Atheist”
Greta Christina’s Blog

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