When The "I" Becomes "We" (Ep.65)

This is Part 4 of my reflections based on the book "The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion" by Jonathan Haidt.

In his book, Jonathan makes a strong case for the groupish nature of humans and for group selection. That we are not just selfish beings but that in essence, we are a part of superorganisms that drive us to selflessness and our moral natures.

In this episode, I explore Durkheim's idea of how collective emotions pull us into the sacred realm, and then I look at the two ways in which we stimulate these collective emotions.

The first is through collective actions or circumstances such as what is found on an army drill field, in a church congregation singing, or the movement of a sports crowd. We can also feel collective emotions when we feel ourselves being part of something greater such as being in a vast and impressive wilderness area or when under the influence of drugs such as psilocybin.

The other is in the language we use inside the collective. Here I will draw on the language within Christianity that fosters the idea of coming together as a superorganism.

Lastly, I look at some evidence for the superiority of religious beliefs in forming cohesive groups.

The Psychology of Conformity: https://academyofideas.com/2017/06/psychology-of-conformity/

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