You mentioned at dinner yesterday that you had this thought, about the role of religion being similar to a fight/flight response.
This got me thinking about the role of religion in my life.
(I'm writing to everyone, probably because I didn't get my obligatory Search this week and need to DISCUSS STUFF. I'll cross-post to the blog as well.)
To me, the biggest thing religion does is to codify a set of guidelines for living. One person said to me that the ten commandments sound exactly like what a father might want to say to all the young men who come around his daughters. Of course, we only make laws we need... we won't codify something as a rule if everyone does it anyway. So, we codify rules when things seem to be necessary advice; something worth telling people.
However, there are some things this doesn't explain.
Religions, especially more extreme cases, have a tendency to rule out some actions which almost everyone enjoys. No pornography-- naked bodies are bad (because you enjoy them too much). Cover up your skin. Don't drink alcohol. Don't wear bright colors. No dancing! That's the devil's workshop. No singing! No sex! No drugs!
And, this may surprise some of you, but these are the religious rules I like best. Something in me responds positively to this, at least the less extreme restrictions. I don't drink very much alcohol (except when Nic offers). I don't watch pornography at all, and I tend to like girls who wear more clothing.
Why do (some) religious groups tend to restrict the things we enjoy most? And why do I feel like it is a good idea?
In some cases, we can justify these restrictions. Alcohol can be dangerous if overdone. Sex, likewise. Other things are somewhat harder to justify. Most of the extreme restrictions (no dancing, women cover all skin, no colors on clothing) seem to result from an extreme, disproportionate fear of sex... so we have an indirect danger. But why blow things out of proportion like this? It doesn't seem like sex is being feared because it is dangerous. It seems like some people have gotten the idea that too much sex is, in itself, bad. Why? Why might people decide to go against something people like so much?
I won't try to explain why in general. Society is a complex animal. But what about me? Is there a reason I find some of these restrictions appealing?
One big motivating force in my life is the desire to be different. I feel that I don't have much value if I do things which everyone does, if I live a life that has been lived many times over in different variations. This seems like a rather foolish life philosophy, since the easiest way to be different is often to do something wrong which everyone else does right. I think I've done some of this. Yet, on the whole, this life philosophy seems to have served me well.
When I think about why I might find these religious restrictions appealing, I am reminded of this philosophy. The desire to be different, to reject the common solution, may make us reject something which humans naturally enjoy.
Everyone likes sports? Then I'm not interested. Whatever people find appealing, I don't care... I want to be different, so I have to dislike it.
Perhaps religious groups that rule out things which humans naturally love are thinking along similar lines: looking for a way to differentiate themselves from the common human. Or, perhaps not. Perhaps it's just older people trying to outlaw the things young people enjoy, to spite them.
Naturally, the biggest reason I find many of these religious ideas appealing is my upbringing. This is true of most religious people. Yet, I could give up these ideas, if they didn't fit with who I've become as a person. I could start watching porn. Why don't I?
Enjoying porn is too easy. It's a rather boring way of getting pleasure, when observed from the outside. I feel more satisfied with what I've done if I spend an evening writing. By outlawing the boring pleasures, religion forces people to find more sophisticated ways of having fun.
Best,
Abram
