Is Religion Natural [Paperback]

How natural is religion? Is it a phenomenon written in our genes or brains, naturally developing with the development of the human race? The book
considers the findings of evolutionary psychology from scientific,
philosophical and theological perspectives and critically examines the relation
between empirical, epistemological and theological notions.
Chapters in
the book deal with the naturalness of religion and religious experiences as
based on genetics, biology and social psychology. Other authors examine the
relationship between religion, science and theology with regard to the
naturalness of religion from a more general perspective. The last part of the
book includes views from a Muslim scholar and a historian.

Dirk Evers is Associate Professor of Systematic Theology and Director of Studies and Research at the Forum Scientiarum at the University of T?bingen, Germany.

Taede A. Smedes is research fellow at the Catholic University Leuven, Belgium, and Scientific Programme Officer of ESSSAT, and the author ofChaos, Complexity, and God: Divine Action and Scientism(Peeters, 2004) andGod en de menselijke maat: Gods handelen en het wetenschappelijk wereldbeeld(Meinema, 2006).

The Rt Rev Dr Antje Jackelen is Bishop of Lund (Sweden) and Adjunct Professor of Systematic Theology/Religion and Science at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, USA.?

Rev. Canon Michael Fuller is Pantonian Professor at the Theological Institute of the Scottish Episcopal Church, Edinburgh.

Part I: Religion - from a natural point of view\1. The Naturalness of Religion and the
Unnaturalness of Theology\2. Are Religious Experiences Natural? Biological
Capacities for Religion\3. Gene Theology
and Folk Biology\4. Context Sensitivity and the Folk Psychology of Souls: Why
Bering et. al. got the Findings they Did\Part
II: Religion - naturally? Philosophical reflections\5. Religion -
Naturally. Religion, TlC%