Atheists show more brain activity

by BurnTheShips 23 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  hamilcarr

  There're many cultural influences on brain function. Some say that non-theistic religions like buddhism might have an even better influence on the brain. The fact that so many atheists in the US suffer from depression and anxiety might be related to the fact that being non-religious is not accepted in American culture.
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  beksbks

  Woooot! Trifecta!
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  Billy the Ex-Bethelite

  "How would you explain the high levels of depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and other mental illnesses among Jehovah's Witnesses?"

  I think it would depend on the personality of the God you believe in. Being a JW made me a wreck. Now that I'm a Pastafarian, I know that my God, Flying Spaghetti Monster, will make certain that I'm always well fed... and he's very forgiving... he never punishes me when I make mistakes... but I get extra Italian Sausage when I do nice things.

  Other than my complete faith in FSM, I'm an athiest, I suppose.

  edited to add: FSM wants me to get a college education and a good-paying job!
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  beksbks

  FSM is a good god!
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  rebel8

  I assume this is what the article is talking about. (I prefer to go to the original source vs. believing a media report's interpretation on face value.)

  How is it that religion can bring about both
  peace of mind and zealous conviction?We suggest that religious
  conviction buffers against anxiety by providing relief from the
  experience of uncertainty and error, and in so doing, strengthening
  convictions and narrowing attention away from inconsistencies.
  We hypothesize that this muted response to uncertainty
  and error is evident neurophysiologically such that religious
  conviction is associated with reduced activity in the anterior
  cingulate cortex (ACC), a cortical system involved in a form of
  attention that serves to regulate both cognitive and emotional
  processing

  This confirms what we already knew. Religions that offer 100% certainty about things that in reality are quite uncertain...tend to attract people who are more interested in certainty than they are in truth or curiosity.

  That would mean it wouldn't decrease illnesses such as schizophrenia, which is not caused by stress. In fact, a person who finds reality terribly confusing, overwhelming, or anxiety-provoking would seem to be attracted to a belief system that offers relief from just that.
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  Elsewhere

  What this means is that believers are less likely to correct their own errors.
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  WTWizard

  Maybe people who are very religious use their religion the way a drunkard uses alcohol. As long as they think God loves them, they at least have that to turn to for comfort. It is usually a shallow comfort--they have to get their "fix" every Sunday at church. Many of the more deeply religious addicts need a "fix" of religion more often. This helps reduce the symptoms of anxiety and depression, but never gets at the root cause (which is as likely to be stagnation or lack of fulfillment in personal needs as anything else).

  As a palliative, I would rank religion right up there with magnesium. The magnesium will help a person to relax. The difference: Magnesium is not something you are going to feel guilty about not taking, and then relieve that guilt by taking more. Religion is.
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  nykid

  It's easier to submit and believe than to think critically about religions and become an atheist in my opinion. There's nothing at all suprising about this to me.
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  Nathan Natas

  I'm an atheist, but I can't read.
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  jam

  I was told by another elder, friends will come too you with all thier problems

  and dump them on you. They will go home and get A good nite

  sleep , while you up alll nite worrying about thier problems. This is the

  same thing that happen too religious people, they dump thier

  problems on the Lord and forget about it, and that,s OK....