The Invention of Divinity
God is as old as humanity. Indeed, the idea of God is older than just early man: it is older than any form of civilization. Even before we became Homo sapiens, even before we were modern human beings, the idea of ritual behavior was already involved in structuring human societies. For millennia, the idea of God has been employed by those in power to control, manipulate and dominate people. In the past, it was used to achieve this through the threat of eternal punishment. Today, it can help to create a feeling of comfort or hope, as well as fear. In this way, the idea of God continues to structure human behavior. Whether it is fear of punishment or comfort and hope provided by the possibility of an afterlife, God has been used as an instrument of power. It continues to structure behavior today.
This chapter, in part, endeavors to unravel all of this, to promote the clarity and liberation that science and the firmness of belief in Naturationalism bring along, and to highlight how a God-religion fiction has been used as a tool of social engineering and of hierarchy-imposition, through looking at the historical context and the psychological dynamics of religious belief.
In contrast, we will look at Naturationalism and how it can provide a more rational and empirical worldview. Because Naturationalism starts with the assumption that the natural is primary with regard to the explanation of phenomena, it can provide people with a much more coherent understanding of our place in the Universe. Why must there be a supernatural, or any other kind of metaphysical world? Why must we add unnecessary extra layers of complexity to what is already known about natural phenomena? Why neglect the obvious? Why treat others of our kind as anything but our equals? Why deny people a sense of personal agency and a sense of responsibility for themselves and the world in which they live? Naturationalism invites you to become an independent person who moves about the world freely and who plays a role in shaping the nature of that world without concern for divine judgment or fate.
Historical Chains of Control
The idea of God, at least as it has manifested itself throughout the history of humanity, has functioned as a uniquely formidable tool for the political and social control of people’s minds. Certain of the most influential religions and civilizations have long witnessed spiritual ascendancy merged with political power, with a consequent and usually highly effective exploitation of divine power as a means of social control. This was as true in ancient Egypt as it was in medieval Europe. In such societies, the fusion of civil and religious authority was a force so overwhelmingly powerful that it was difficult, at best, to oppose it.
The pharaohs of ancient Egypt, for example, were not only human kings but also living divinities, whose divine status legitimized their virtually unlimited sovereign power over their subjects by bringing together the sacred and the secular. In medieval Europe, the doctrine of the divine right of kings held that kings received their authority directly from God and hence could exercise their sovereign power unchecked.
The instrumental use of godliness to conceal actions that might otherwise seem indefensible is a recurring pattern in history. In a way, there seemed to be no end to what political or civil entities could do to one another, especially when logic tied these actions to some form of divine sanction. So any form of dissent or challenge to the status quo had to be seen not only as a political transgression but also as an offence against God.
Defiance of the these theocracies meant more than just challenging an earthly ruler; it was an affront to a divine sovereign. With their judgments simultaneously in this world and the next, it was hard to make sense of where exactly one ended and the other began. Political dissent was inseparable from blasphemy, and blasphemy – in some cases – was punishable by death. Rulers had the power to mete out such retribution for any perceived threat to their dynasty, making resistance to divine kingship an incredibly risky proposition.
Political tyranny bound to religious absolutism creates an imposing example of how religion has been used to quash critical thinking and open intellectual enquiry. When political authority is equated to divine will, an obsequious, unquestioning attitude towards leadership is deemed justified. This leads to a form of intellectual and which challenging the status quo is not only hazardous but also treated as a sin.
Even in more modern contexts, however, as societies have adopted certain elements of democracy and the rule of law, religious institutions have often retained a strong impact on political systems, educational structures and the fabric of social mores. This continued influence of the long liberation of religion on modern society is an intricate and nuanced phenomenon that reflects the deep entrenchment of faith in human culture and history. In some places today, this influence is overt and omnipresent, theocratic governments and states with official religions feature religious doctrines that pervade the legislative process, educational curricula, and social expectations. A primarily religious basis for the justification of civil authority in such instances often creates an interconnection of religious and civil power that cast a wide net of influence that can touch nearly every area of a citizen’s life, from personal intimacy to public policy.
Elsewhere in the world, the power of religious institutions is more insidious, but no less consequential in forming cultural and legal norms. Here, religious values and traditions frequently provide the backdrop to, or influence, social attitudes and behaviors in less overt ways. This might include policy disputes over social issues, voting patterns at elections, or cultural norms in family structures and gender roles. In allegedly secular societies too, the legacy of past theology is evident, whether in legal frameworks, ethical structures and cultural traditions.
This continuous religious force, either overt or sublimated, brings into play significant issues about the limits of religious freedom and secular government, and the rights of the individual. It reflects the ongoing tug-of-war between tradition and progress, faith and reason, that will define the global society of the future.
