The article, by Rachel Nuwer, is called "Will religion ever disappear?" I recall noticing the title when the article first appeared on December 19, 2014, but I was too busy to stop and take a look. On January 2, though, I somehow ended up there -- almost 10 years to the day since the Christ Zone model of consciousness was first laid out for me in the course of my daily mystical conversations with the soul who once lived as Jesus.
In her article, Nuwer asks whether the rise of atheism around the world will inevitably lead to the death of religion and spirituality. Her conclusion, based on research from experts in psychology, neurology, history, anthropology, and logistics, is that "religion will probably never go away." The reason? The reason boils down to "a god-shaped hole [that] seems to exist in our species' neuropsychology, thanks to a quirk of our evolution."
This "god-shaped hole," which we're always trying to fill with meaning and purpose, springs from the scientific reality that human brains seem to use not one but two basic and distinctive forms of thought. Researchers from social, personality, cognitive, and clinical psychology refer to this in broad terms as "dual process theory." Recent fMRI studies show that specific brain areas are used to process information from the first system and different brain areas are used to process information from the second. Sometimes these two systems are in competition with each other.
The two basic forms of thought are creatively referred to by researchers as "System 1" and "System 2." Me, I call these two processing systems the Soul Circuitry and the Darwinian Circuitry.
Researchers agree that System 1, which seems to be much older in evolutionary terms, is oriented towards intuition, morality, recognizing patterns in the world around us, and seeking meaning and relationships. System 2, which is actually much newer, involves conscious reasoning and careful application of logic.
I learned this week that dual process theory has been around for a long time among modern psychologists. But somehow I missed it. I`ve known for several years about some early theological references to the "two-part brain" -- for instance, soon after Jesus explained the Christ Zone model to me, I saw the significance of his use of the rare term "dipsychos" (double-minded) in James 1:8, and later I noted Augustine of Hippo's description of himself as a man torn by the conflicting impulses of two different minds -- but I had no idea that my painstaking efforts in the past 10 years to understand the brain-soul nexus were being paralleled in psychology research labs around the world (albeit while skirting any reference to "soul").
That's why I started to laugh. When you`re dealing with angels on an everyday basis, timing is everything.
 |
| Successful religious architecture appeals to both System 1 and System 2 in the brain. St. Pancras, in Widecombe-in-the-Moor, England, echoes the emotional tones and colours of the haunting hills of Dartmoor. |
Even if you're an atheist, and you don't agree with me that System 1 is a 3D analogue for the unique emotional and creative needs of the soul, you still can't avoid the scientific reality that your brain is wired to WANT morality and values. System 1 exists whether you like it or not, and it's part of a healthy brain.
It`s a scientific fact that if you don't give System 1 something useful to do, it'll give you feedback whether you like it or not. As Nuwer says, "Similarly, many around the world who explicitly say they don`t believe in a god still harbour superstitious tendencies, like belief in ghosts, astrology, karma, telepathy or reincarnation. 'In Scandanavia, most people say they don`t believe in God, but paranormal and superstitious beliefs tend to be higher than you`d think,' [Ara Norenzayan of the University of British Columbia] says. Additionally, non-believers often lean on what could be interpreted as religious proxies -- sports teams, yoga, professional institutions, Mother Nature and more -- to guide their values in life . . . 'People seem to have this conceptual space for religious thought, which -- if it`s not filled by religion -- bubbles up in surprising ways,' [says Justin Barrett of Fuller Theological Seminary]."
The scientific reality of System 1 is something that has to be factored into any decision you make about your personal spiritual practices. You might like to believe you can rise above all that System 1 nonsense of intuition, morality, recognizing patterns, and seeking meaning and relationships. You might like to believe you can replace emotion and intuition with pure reason and logic at no cost. The cost, however, will be very high: you'll be forcing your brain to ignore the decision-making wisdom of huge hunks of your brain.
I find it easier, more logical, and a lot more fun to live my life by using my whole brain and allowing myself to trust the scientific concepts explained to me by my angels instead of relying on superstition, sports scores, entertainment news, and paranormal "reality shows" for my sense of wholeness and meaning.
God bless my angels for insisting I read the news from reputable, reliable new sources.
I wouldn`t have it any other way.
