A new book, The Prehistory of Compassion, is generating a fair amount of press coverage. The title has a familiar ring to it and seemingly riffs Steven Mithen’s The Prehistory of the Mind. I would not be surprised if this is the case, given that Mithen and the authors are UK archaeologists with Cambridge connections. [...]
Tags:altruism·anthropoids·Antonio Damasio·autism·autistics·Brandon Keim·collaboration·compassion·cooperation·empathy·Eocene·evolution of emotions·feelings·group level selection·invisible agents·Jennifer Viegas·non-physical beings·Penny Spikins·Steven Mithen·The Prehistory of Compassion·The Prehistory of the Mind·World Vision
In the beginning, I had some hope for the Huffington Post’s relatively new section devoted to religion. Here was a forum, I thought, where difficult questions could be asked and possible answers ventured. Not once, however, have I read a post which asks a tough question, which might include any of the following:
What is “religion”?
Why [...]
Tags:compassion·deities·demons·doctrines·ecumenical·educated·enlightened·ethics·exegesis·existential·Frank Schaeffer·fundamentalism·fuzzy·gods·hermeneutics·Huffington Post·HuffPo Religion·Jay Michaelson·liberal·literalism·love·meaning·morals·mystical·mysticism·myth·progressive·purpose·sophisticated·souls·spirits·syncretic·vague
As usual, lots of weird news from religion land. Let’s start with this AP report about a Baptist minister in St. Cloud, MN who paid for a newspaper ad stating that Muslims “seek to influence a nation by immigration, reproduction, education, the government, illegal drugs and by supporting the gay agenda.”
This minister clearly knows nothing [...]
Tags:altruism·beatification·canonization·Catholic saint·compassion·ecumenical·Family Research Council·intolerance·Islam·James Dobson·James Verini·JC·Koran·liberal religionists·Muslims·Reverend Dennis Campbell·sainthood·Sharia law·South Park·Tenzin Gyatso·toddlers·wife beating
