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History and Religion

2025-08-21T07:21:04-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Are Humans and Other Animals Altruistic?

Last updated on: August 21, 2025 at 7:21 am By Larry Jordan

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It seems reasonable to me that “unselfish” behavior in animals or humans can be similarly and variously explained by some combination of altruism, protective instincts, and reciprocal behavior. Why would we assume that humans are different than other animals, that humans are inherently “good” or “bad,” or that altruistic behavior in humans or other animals is NOT natural? Recently, we traveled to the Arctic with several scientists, including Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist and a prominent atheist. I... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-08-14T07:03:35-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The End of Evolution?

Last updated on: August 14, 2025 at 7:03 am By Larry Jordan

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What if natural intelligence has reached the end of its evolution, while artificial intelligence has only reached the beginning of its evolution? Recently, I traveled to the Arctic with a group of scientists, including Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist and a prominent atheist. I wrote about Dawkins here and here and here. Dawkins is a Darwinian, and one of his best-known books is The Selfish Gene. In the book, Dawkins suggests that evolution by natural selection takes place at the... Read more

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Education and Religion

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artiticial intelligence

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Richard Dawkins

unnatural selection

2025-07-31T14:19:10-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Certainty is the Great Enemy of Unity

Last updated on: July 31, 2025 at 2:19 pm By Larry Jordan

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In Conclave, author Robert Harris writes, “…The one sin I have come to fear more than any other is certainty. Certainty is the great enemy of unity. Certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance.” Why are we so certain? Our conclusions flow naturally from our assumptions. But how can we be so certain about our assumptions? Have we tested them? In The Way, I described my twenty-year spiritual deconstruction and reconstruction. The deconstruction was not angry or judgmental,... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-07-23T19:40:16-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Transcendent Experiences: Nirvana or Nonsense?

Last updated on: July 23, 2025 at 7:40 pm By Larry Jordan

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Richard Dawkins and other scientists are interested in transcendent experiences. They are NOT seeing anything personal or supernatural. Scientists are simply imagining something natural that we might ultimately be able to explain with biology, chemistry and physics. I wrote about my dinner with Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist and a prominent atheist, here. In that column, I described his considerable curiosity and his noteworthy open-mindedness. Dawkins reportedly has a very high IQ, and he does NOT suffer fools gladly. I... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-07-16T08:20:44-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Mind Beyond Brain: Are We Living in the Matrix?

Last updated on: July 16, 2025 at 8:20 am By Larry Jordan

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In my writing, I suggest that the brain might be more of a receiver than a transmitter. This may explain phenomena like extra-sensory perception, near-death experiences, out-of-body experiences, and past life recollections more simply than alternative explanations. I wrote about our recent trip with several atheists and scientists, including Richard Dawkins, here. In the column, I marveled at their awe, gratitude, reverence, and sense of responsibility. When I learned that Richard Dawkins would be on the trip, I warned my... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-07-11T17:02:48-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The Science of Beauty and the Beauty of Science

Last updated on: July 11, 2025 at 5:02 pm By Larry Jordan

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Science is exploring the big questions that theology is ignoring. Have you ever heard a sermon on awe, consciousness, interconnection, mind beyond brain, or transcendence? Me, neither. Last week, I spent ten days cruising around Svalbard, an archipelago halfway between Europe and the North Pole. Svalbard is the size of Scotland, with a population of fewer than 3,000 people. There were only 80 passengers on the ship. The tour was sponsored by “New Scientist” magazine. The featured speaker was Richard... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-08-06T22:19:54-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Nations Rise and Fall. Religions Rise and Fall.

Last updated on: August 6, 2025 at 10:19 pm By Larry Jordan

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Nations rise and fall, and religions rise and fall. Species evolve and face extinction. If human beings are still here in 2,000 years, will the religions of our day still exist? Or will they fall away, like the other primitive religions (Egyptian, Greek, Persian, and Roman) that co-existed with Christianity and Judaism only 2,000 years ago? Jim Palmer, who wrote the foreword to The Way, recently said, “We all preference our own traditions.” That is, we all give... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-06-25T18:56:13-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Reconciling History and Mythology

Last updated on: June 25, 2025 at 6:56 pm By Larry Jordan

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Mythology can lead us toward or away from truth. Anyone who studies mythology will recognize that many aspects of the Christian story are common archetypes in other traditions. Most primitive cultures developed creation stories and explanations for evil. Aspects of Jesus’ life are similar to those of other avatars and deities, such as Krishna and Osiris. Virgin birth, divine sonship and physical resurrection are examples. Some Christians believe that Christian tradition is historical, while others’ traditions are mythological. But, traditions... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-06-19T08:47:47-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Rediscovering Introspection, Reflection and Restoration

Last updated on: June 19, 2025 at 8:47 am By Larry Jordan

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Pope Leo XIV recently delivered an address expressing appreciation for the Eastern Catholic churches. I think that the Pope was talking about introspection, reflection and reparation: “It is likewise important to rediscover, especially in the Christian West, a sense of the primacy of God, the importance of mystagogy and the values so typical of Eastern spirituality: constant intercession, penance, fasting, and weeping for one’s own sins and for those of all humanity (penthos)! It is vital, then, that you preserve... Read more

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Education and Religion

2025-08-28T09:35:53-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Resolving Certainty and Doubt

Last updated on: August 28, 2025 at 9:35 am By Larry Jordan

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We do NOT know anything about Ultimate Reality. At least, we do NOT “know” in the way that we know that the sun is shining. We Do NOT Know Anything About Ultimate Reality In The Way, I wrote that many people believe some things so strongly that they “know” them, but beliefs are opinions, not facts. After I read 1,000 books, I knew much less than I used to know. Sometimes we think we “know” because we assume... Read more

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Education and Religion

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