Posts Tagged: Belief

Between Haidt and Harris: Belief, Religion and Morality

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What motivates a suicide bomber? That question divides Sam Harris and Jonathan Haidt, two scholars who study religion from the psychological perspective. For Harris the answer is religion. “Subtract the Muslim belief in martyrdom and jihad, and the actions of suicide bombers become completely unintelligible,” he says in The End of Faith. Haidt takes a… read more »

What Believers and Atheists Can Learn From Each Other

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There’s no doubt that religious beliefs influence negative behavioral consequences, so atheists are right to criticize religion on many epistemological claims. But I’ve learned from believers and my background in cognitive psychology that faith-based beliefs are not necessarily irrational. Continue Reading Here Notes: This article is a conversation between me a Rabbi Geoff Mitelman