Click here Gardner, M. 1999. The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener. (Paperback edition.) New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, p. 384.
CHAPTER 1: Do You Believe in God? The Difference in Our Answers and the Difference It Makes
Click here Lindsey, H. 1970. The Late Great Planet Earth. New York: Bantam, pp. 83, 86.
Click here Kushner, H. 1981. When Bad Things Happen to Good People. New York: Avon Books.
Click here Lindsey, H. 1970. The Late Great Planet Earth. New York: Bantam, pp.40,50,55–56.
Click here Medawar, P. 1982. Pluto’s Republic: The Art of the Soluble and Induction and Intuition in Scientific Thought. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 2.
Click here Huxley, T. H. 1894. Collected Essays, Vol. 5. New York: D. Appleton and Co., pp. 237–238.
Click here Elson, J. T. 1966. “Theology: Toward a Hidden God,” Time, April 8: 85.
Click here Huxley, T. H. 1894. Collected Essays, Vol. 5. New York: D. Appleton and Co., p. 238.
Click here Shermer, M. 1997. “The Annotated Gardner: An Interview with Martin Gardner—Founder of the Modern Skeptical Movement,” Skeptic, 4/1: 56–60.
Click here Symons, D. 1997. Personal correspondence. November 11.
Click here Sarich, V. 1997. Personal correspondence. November 11.
Click here Tillich quote from Edwards, P. (ed.). 1964. The Existence of God. New York: Macmillan, p. 2.
CHAPTER 2: Is God Dead? Why Nietzsche and Time Magazine Were Wrong
Click here Nietzsche, F. 1954 (1883–1885). “Thus Spoke Zarathustra.” In The Portable Nietzsche, (trans. and ed.) Walter Kaufmann. New York: Viking, p. 2.
Click here McGuire, B. 1965. “Eve of Destruction,” ABC Dunhill Music.
Click here Elson, J. T. 1966. “Theology: Toward a Hidden God,” Time, April 8: 82–87.
Click here Shute, N. 1957. On the Beach. New York: Ballantine Books, pp. 148–149.
Click here Lennon quote in Pareles, J., and P. Romanowski (eds.). 1983. The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll. New York: Rolling Stone, p. 34.
Click here Clarke, A. C. 1968. 2001: A Space Odyssey. New York: Signet, pp. 34, 221.
Click here Elson, J. T. 1966. “Theology: Toward a Hidden God,” Time, April 8: 82.
Click here Ibid.: 82–87.
Click here Gallup. G. H., Jr., and F. Newport. 1996. “Gallup Poll of American Religious Beliefs,” Wall Street Journal, January 30.
Click here Barna, G. 1996. Index of Leading Spiritual Indicators. Dallas, Tex.: Word Publishing.
Click here Pew Research Center. 1997. “Poll Says 71% Believe in God,” San Francisco Chronicle. AP Release. December 22.
Click here For a general discussion of the secularization thesis see lannaccone, L. R. 1998. “Introduction to the Economics of Religion.” Journal of Economic Literature, 36, September: 1465–1496.
Click here Greeley, A. 1997. “Pie in the Sky While You’re Alive: Life after Death and Supply Side Religion.” Paper delivered to the American Sociological Association annual meeting, Toronto, September, p. 2. See also:
Finke, R. 1989. “Demographics of Religious Participation: An Ecological Approach, 1850–1971,” journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 28: 45–58.
Finke, R. 1990. “Religious Deregulation: Origins and Consequences,” Journal of Church and State, 32: 609–626.
Finke, R. 1992. “An Unsecular America.” In Religion and Modernization: Sociologists and Historians Debate the Secularization Thesis. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Chaves, M., and D. Cann. 1992. “Regulation, Pluralism, and Religious Market Structure: Explaining Religion’s Vitality,” Rationality and Society, 4(3): 272–290.
Stark, R., and L. R. Iannaccone. 1994. “A Supply-Side Reinterpretation of the ‘Secularization’ of Europe,” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 33:230–252.
Click here Smith, A. 1965 (1776). An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. New York: Modern Library, pp. 3–4.
Click here Greeley, A. 1997. “Pie in the Sky While You’re Alive: Life after Death and Supply Side Religion,” pp. 16, 17.
Click here Finke, R., and R. Stark. 1992. The Churching of America, 1776–1990: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press.
Click here Van Biema, D. 1997. “Does Heaven Exist?” Time, March 24: 73.
Click here Woodward, K. L. 1997. “Is God Listening?” Newsweek, March 31: 57–65.
Click here Koerner, B. I. 1997. “Is There Life after Death?” U.S. News and World Report, March 31: 59–66.
Click here Cheney, P. 1996. “Most Ontarians Believe in Miracles, Survey Finds,” The Toronto Star, December 27: A10.
Click here Promise Keepers data cited in Stodghill, R. 1997. “God of Our Fathers,” Time, October 6: 34–39.
Click here McCartney quote in Swomley, J. M. 1997. “Storm Troopers in the Culture War,” The Humanist, September–October: 10–13.
Click here Television viewing data cited in Stein, J. 1997. “The God Squad,” Time, September 22: 105–106.
Click here Reading data cited in Marquand, R. 1997. “Religious Reading Becoming More Popular,” Christian Science Monitor, August 27.
Click here Friedman, R. E. 1995. The Disappearance of God. New York: Little, Brown, pp. 7, 284.
Click here Goodenough, U. 1998. The Sacred Depths of Nature. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. xvii.
CHAPTER 3: The Belief Engine: How We Believe
Click here Gallup, G. H., Jr., and F. Newport. 1991. “Belief in Paranormal Phenomena among Adult Americans,” Skeptical Inquirer, 5(2): 137–147.
Click here Cosmides, L., and J. Tooby. 1994. “The Center for Evolutionary Psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara” (Descriptive Brochure).
See also:
Barkow, J. H., L. Cosmides, and J. Tooby. 1992. The Adapted Mind. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Miele, F. 1996. “The (Im)moral Animal,” Skeptic, 4/1: 42–49.
Click here Pinker, S. 1997. How the Mind Works. New York: W. W. Norton, pp. 27-31.
Click here Noelle, D. C. 1998. Personal correspondence. March 19.
See also:
Karmiloff-Smith, A. 1995. Beyond Modularity: A Developmental Perspective on Cognitive Science. London: Bradford.
Click here Mithen, S. 1996. The Prehistory of the Mind: The Cognitive Origins of Art, Religion, and Science. London: Thames and Hudson, p. 163.
Click here For the relationship between magic and uncertainty see Vyse, S. A. 1997. Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Click here For the relationship between worship and health see Schumaker, J. F. 1992. “Mental Health Consequences of Irreligion.” In Religion and Mental Health, (ed.) J. F. Schumaker. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Click here For the relationship between magic and power see Harris, M. 1974. Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture. New York: Vintage.
Click here Gould, S. J., and R. Lewontin. 1979. “The Spandrels of San Marco and the Panglossian Paradigm: A Critique of the Adaptionist Programme,” Proceedings of the Royal Society, V. B205: 581–598.
Click here Evans-Pritchard, E. E. 1976 (1937). Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic Among the Azande. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 178–179, 181.
Click here Oubré, A. 1996. “Plants, Property, and People,” Skeptic, 4/2: 72–77.
Click here Chagnon, N. 1992. Yanomamö, 4th ed. New York: Harcourt, Brace, and Jovanovich, pp. 69–70, 105.
Click here Malinowski, B. 1954 (1925). Magic, Science, and Religion. New York: Doubleday, pp. 17, 29, 139–140.
Click here For medieval magical thinking examples see:
Seligman, K. 1948. The History of Magic. New York: Pantheon.
Thomas, K. 1971. Religion and the Decline of Magic. New York: Scribner’s.
Grillot de Givry, E. 1973. The Illustrated Anthology of Sorcery, Magic and Alchemy, (trans.) J. Courtenay Locke. New York: Causeway
Books.
Russell, J. B. 1980. A History of Witchcraft: Sorcerers, Heretics and Pagans. London: Thames and Hudson.
Surles, R. L. 1993. Medical Numerology. New York: Garland.
Click here Vyse, S. A. 1997. Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 105.
Click here Krakauer, J. 1997. Into Thin Air. New York: Villard, p. 128.
Vyse, S. A. 1997. Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 84–85.
Click here See www.vanpraagh.com
Click here Van Praagh, J. 1997. Talking to Heaven. New York: Dutton.
Click here Witchel, A. 1998. “James Van Praagh Profile.” New York Times, February 22.
CHAPTER 4: Why People Believe in God: An Empirical Study on a Deep Question
Click here Humphrey, N. 1996. Leaps of Faith: Science, Miracles, and the Search for Supernatural Consolation. New York: Basic Books, pp. 153–155.
Click here Vyse, S. A. 1997. Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 84–85.
Click here Kosko, B. 1993. Fuzzy Thinking: The New Science of Fuzzy Logic. New York: Hyperion, p. 278.
Click here Plomin, R. 1989. “Environment and Genes: Determinants of Behavior,” American Psychologist, 44(2): 107.
Click here Waller, N. G., B. Kojetin, T. Bouchard, D. Lykken, and A. Tellegen. 1990. “Genetic and Environmental Influences on Religious Attitudes and Values: A Study of Twins Reared Apart and Together,” Psychological Science, 1(2): 138–141.
Click here Segal, N. L. 1999. Entwined Lives: Twins and What They Tell Us about Human Behavior. New York: Dutton.
For a complete discussion of cultural and biological influences on religiosity see: Wulff, D. M. 1991. Psychology of Religion: Classic and Contemporary Views. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
Hood, R. W., B. Spilka, B. Hunsberger, and R. Gorsuch. 1996. The Psychology of Religion: An Empirical Approach, 2nd ed. New York: Guilford Press.
Parejko, K. 1998. “Selection for Credulity: A Biologist’s View of the Millennium,” Skeptic, 7/1: 37–39.
Click here Ramachandran, V. S., W. S. Hirstein, K. C. Armel, E. Tecoma, and V. Iragui. 1997. “The Neural Basis of Religious Experience.” Paper delivered to the Annual Conference of the Society of Neuroscience. October. Abstract #519.1. Vol. 23, Society of Neuroscience.
Click here Hotz, R. L. 1997. “Brain Could Affect Religious Response, Researchers Report,” Los Angeles Times, October 31: B1.
Click here Hotz. R. L. 1998. “Seeking the Biology of Spirituality,” Los Angeles Times, April 26: A1, A32.
Click here Russell and Arbib quotes in Hotz, 1998.
Click here Ramachandran, V. S., and S. Blakeslee. 1998. Phantoms in the Brain. New York: Morrow.
Click here Persinger, M. A. 1987. Neuropsychological Bases of God Beliefs. New York: Praeger.
Click here Persinger, M. A. 1993. “Paranormal and Religious Beliefs May Be Mediated Differently by Subcortical and Cortical Phenomenological Processes of the Temporal (Limbic) Lobes,” Perceptual and Motor Skills, 76: 247–251.
Click here Shermer, M. 1997. Why People Believe Weird Things. New York: W. H. Freeman and Company.
Click here For more background on Michael Persinger see Regush, N. 1995. “Brain Storms and Angels,” Equinox, July–August: 63–75.
Click here Brierre de Boismont, A. J. F. 1859. On Hallucinations: A History and Explanation of Apparitions, Visions, Dreams, Ecstasy, Magnetism, and Somnambulism, (trans.) R. T. Hulme. London: Henry Renshaw, pp. 340, 346, 348, 378, 383.
Click here Persinger, M. A. 1987. Neuropsychological Bases of God Beliefs. New York: Praeger, p. 138.
Click here Noelle, D. C. 1998. Personal correspondence. March 31.
Click here For additional data on religiosity see Goldhaber, G. 1996. “Religious Belief in America: A New Poll,” Free Inquiry, 16(3): 34–40.
Click here Dawkins, R. 1976. The Selfish Gene. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 99, 192.
Click here Brodie, R. 1996. Virus of the Mind: The New Science of the Meme. Seattle, Wash.: Integral Press.
Click here Lynch, A. 1996. Thought Contagion: How Belief Spreads through Society. New York: Basic Books.
Click here Blackmore, S. 1997. “The Power of the Meme Meme: Religion as a Meme Suggests How a Science of Memetics Illuminates Human Evolution,” Skeptic, 5/2: 46.
Click here Polichak, J. W. 1998. “Memes—What Are They Good For? A Critique of Memetic Approaches to Information Processing,” Skeptic, 6/3: 46.
Click here Blackmore, S. 1999. The Meme Machine. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Click here Leuba, J. H. 1916. The Belief in God and Immortality: A Psychological, Anthropological and Statistical Study. Boston: Sherman, French & Co.
Click here Larson, E. J., and L. Witham. 1997. “Scientists Are Still Keeping the Faith,” Nature, 386: 435.
Click here Bergman, G. R. 1996. “Religious Beliefs of Scientists: A Survey of the Research,” Free Inquiry, 16(3): 41–46.
Click here Leuba, J. H. 1934. “Religious Beliefs of American Scientists,” Harper’s Magazine, 169: 291–300.
Click here Bishop’s data is reported in Huba, S. 1999. “Biblical Version of Creation OK by Americans,” The Detroit News, April 6.
Click here Shermer, M. 1995. “Skeptics Society Survey,” Skeptic, 3/4: 20.
Click here The Carnegie Commission study is reported in Stark, R., and L. R. Iannaccone. 1994. “A Supply-Side Reinterpretation of the ‘Secularization’ of Europe,” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 33: 230–252.
Click here U.S. Census Bureau data is reported in Day, J. C., and A. E. Curry. 1998. “Educational Attainment in the United States: March 1998 (Update),” Current Population Reports. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce.
Click here Brand, C. 1981. “Personality and Political Attitudes.” In Dimensions of Personality, (ed.) R. Lynn. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
Click here Sulloway, F. 1996. Born to Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics, and Creative Lives. New York: Pantheon, p. 269.
Click here U.S. Congressional data reported in Benson, P. L., and D. L. Williams. 1982. Religion on Capitol Hill: Myths and Realities. San Francisco: Harper & Row, p. 124.
Click here Wulff, D. M. 1991. Psychology of Religion: Classic and Contemporary Views. New York: John Wiley and Sons.
Click here For data on the five-factor model see McCrae, R. R., and P. T. Costa, Jr. 1987. “Validation of the Five Factor Model of Personality across Instruments and Observers,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52: 81–90. See also:
McCrae, R. R., and P. T. Costa, Jr. 1990. Personality in Adulthood. New York: Guilford Press.
Click here For the relationship between openness and birth order see Sulloway, F. 1996. Born to Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics, and Creative Lives. New York: Pantheon.
How We Believe, 2nd Ed. Page 38