In the Name of God: the Evolutionary Origins of Religious Ethics and Violence by John Teehan

In the Name of God Blackwell Public Philosophy Edited by Michael Boylan, Marymount University In a world of 24-hour news cycles and increasingly specialized knowledge, the Blackwell Public Philosophy series takes seriously the idea that there is a need and demand for engaging and thoughtful discussion of topics of broad public importance. Philosophy itself is historically grounded in the public square, bringing people together to try to understand the various issues that shape their lives and give them meaning. This “love of wisdom” – the essence of philosophy – lies at the heart of the series. Written in an accessible, jargon-free manner by internationally renowned authors, each book is an invitation to the world beyond newsfl ashes and soundbites and into public wisdom. 1. Permission to Steal: Revealing the Roots of Corporate Scandal by Lisa H. Newton 2. Doubting Darwin? Creationist Designs on Evolution by Sahotra Sarkar 3. The Extinction of Desire: A Tale of Enlightenment by Michael Boylan 4. Torture and the Ticking Bomb by Bob Brecher 5. In Defense of Dolphins: The New Moral Frontier by Thomas I. White 6. Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism: Ethics and Liberal Democracy by Seumas Miller 7. Who Owns You? The Corporate Gold Rush to Patent Your Genes by David Koepsell 8. Animalkind: What We Owe to Animals by Jean Kazez 9. In the Name of God: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Ethics and Violence by John Teehan For further information about individual titles in the series, supplementary material, and regular updates, visit www.wiley.com/go/bpp In the Name of God The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Ethics and Violence John Teehan A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication This edition fi rst published 2010 © 2010 John Teehan Blackwell Publishing was acquired by John Wiley & Sons in February 2007. Blackwell’s publishing program has been merged with Wiley’s global Scientifi c, Technical, and Medical business to form Wiley-Blackwell. Registered Offi ce John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom Editorial Offi ces 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UK The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK For details of our global editorial offi ces, for customer services, and for information about how to apply for permission to reuse the copyright material in this book please see our website at www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell. The right of John Teehan to be identifi ed as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Teehan, John. In the name of God : the evolutionary origins of religious ethics and violence / John Teehan. p. cm. – (Blackwell public philosophy series) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4051-8382-6 (hardcover : alk. paper) – ISBN 978-1-4051-8381-9 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Religious ethics. 2. Violence–Religious aspects. 3. Psychology, Religious. 4. Evolutionary psychology. 5. Cognitive psychology. I. Title. BJ1188.T44 2010 205.01′9–dc22 2009041467 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Set in 10/12pt Sabon by Toppan Best-set Premedia Limited Printed in Singapore 1 2010 To Patricia, who makes everything I do possible and To Megan and Daniel, who make everything I do worthwhile contents Acknowledgments ix Introduction: Evolution and Mind 1 1 The Evolution of Morality 9 Setting the Task 9 The Moral Brain 15 The First Layer: Kin Selection 21 The Second Layer: Reciprocal Altruism 25 A Third Layer: Indirect Reciprocity 27 A Fourth Layer: Cultural Group Selection 32 A Fifth Layer: The Moral Emotions 36 Conclusion: From Moral Grammar to Moral Systems 41 2 The Evolution of Moral Religions 43 Setting the Task 43 The Evolution of the Religious Mind 45 Conceptualizing the Almighty 53 The Moral Function of Gods 62 3 Evolutionary Religious Ethics: Judaism 72 Setting the Task 72 Constructing Yahweh 74 The Ten Commandments: An Evolutionary Interpretation 80 Conclusion: The Evolved Law 101 4 Evolutionary Religious Ethics: Christianity 104 Setting the Task 104 Constructing the Christ 107 viii contents Setting the Boundaries: Christian and/or Jew? 114 The Third Race: Christians as In-Group 124 Putting on Christ: Christianity’s Signals of Commitment 129 Loving Your Neighbor and Turning the Other Cheek 135 5 Religion, Violence, and the Evolved Mind 144 Setting the Task 144 Devoted to Destruction: Sanctifi ed Violence and Judaism 147 The Blood of the Lamb 160 A Case Study in the Evolved Psychology of Religious Violence: 9/11 174 6 Religion Evolving 180 Setting the Task 180 Varieties of Religious Expressions 182 If There Were No God … 186 Religion, Ethics, and Violence: An Assessment 193 Responding to Religion, Ethics, and Violence: Some Proposals 202 Conclusions 215 Notes 220 Bibliography 243 Index 259 acknowledgments This work is the end result of years of writing and speaking on these topics. Some of the basic ideas were fi rst published as “ The Evolution of Religious Ethics ” in Free Inquiry 25, no. 4 (June/July 2005), and then were expanded upon in “ The Evolutionary Basis of Religious Ethics” in Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science 41/3 (September 2006): 747 – 774. Comments and suggestions provided during the peer review process certainly contributed to refi ning those earlier musings. Also important to the development of my thinking on these issues was the feedback I received at the numerous conferences where different stages of the book took shape. Conversations with Robert Hinde at the Religion, Cognitive Psychology and Evolutionary Psychology Conference, sponsored by the New England Institute, were not only enjoyable but shaped some of the discussions in Chapter 6 . The Moral Brain: Evolutionary and Neuro- scientifi c Perspectives Conference, at Ghent University, Belgium, directed by Johan Braeckman and Jan Verplaetse, was a wonderful opportunity to explore the possible impact of neuroscience on religious psychology, and conversations with Adrian Raine, William Casebeer and Randolph Nesse all raised questions that spurred me to further refi ne my thinking. I also benefi ted greatly from an academic leave from Hofstra University which allowed me to spend a semester studying the Law and the Hebrew Bible, with Danna Nolan Fewell at Drew University. That course of study, along with Danna ’ s aid in negotiating the voluminous literature on the topic, and her comments on the material that became Chapter 3 , allowed me to wade more confi dently into the world of Ancient Judaism, and limited whatever missteps I may have taken. During the writing of the book I received more support than I can acknowledge. Arthur Dobrin was a constant source of encouragement throughout the long gestation period of this work. Stephanie Cobb not only provided an insightful review of my writing on Christianity, but was an x acknowledgments invaluable source of support throughout the fi nal stages of the project. I need to thank Stan Nevins for starting me on the philosophical path that brought me here. I also owe a debt of gratitude to Patrick Alexander, Balbinder Bhogal, Ann Burlein, Julie Byrne, Steven Clarke, Hank Davis, Chris DiCarlo, Warren Frisina, Terry Godlove, Deena Grant, Stewart Guthrie, Joseph Henrich, James Levy, Linda Longmire, Pete Richerson, William Rottschaefer, Azim Shariff, David Livingstone Smith, and Tim Smith, for their comments on various sections, chapters, and ideas in this work; an additional thanks to Stewart Guthrie for his help in working through some of the issues in Chapter 2 . The fl aws that remain in this book are of course mine, but they would have been embarrassingly greater without these contributions. I also benefi ted from the comments provided by various readers at Wiley - Blackwell, and I greatly appreciate the editorial support and advice that Jeff Dean provided along each stage of development; this helped me turn an undisciplined manuscript into a book. I also owe more thanks than I can express to my wife, Patricia, without whose support, encouragement, and great patience, this book would not have been written. introduction: evolution and mind In the distant future I see open fi elds for far more important researches. Psychology will be based on a new foundation, that of the necessary acquirement of each mental power and capacity by gradation. Light will be thrown on the origin of man and his history. (Charles Darwin, 1859) Charles Darwin showed great restraint in extending the process of natural selection to the human animal. He clearly saw there was nothing to prevent an application of the evolutionary process to the history of human beings, but Darwin was a cautious man and not prone to making claims that outran the available evidence.

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