New blog on cognitive science of religion

Robert McCauley, who is the President of the International Association for the Cognitive Science of Religion and one of the central figures in cognitive science of religion has begun writing a blog for Psychology Now. The blog has the same title as Bob’s recent OUP book – Why Religion is Natural and Science is Not. I can but wholeheartedly agree with how he ends his very first post:

The crucial point is that the cognitive sciences offer a wholly new approach to comparing science and religion.  Comparing their cognitive foundations will certainly overlap with traditional comparisons of their intellectual merits; however, to the extent that their cognitive comparison examines the implicit, unconscious operations of our minds, it traverses new territories that have, until quite recently, gone unexplored.  My contention, in short, is that it promises startling new insights about science, about religion, and about their comparison

It is for these very reasons that I find it so exciting to be participating in this area of research and so am very much looking forward to future posts. Furthermore, Bob has chosen to very clearly state the view that he does not think that the pronouncements of religion and science are compatible. Given that he is blogging for what is a popular American journal, it will be very interesting to see what the response will be. I wish him good luck – not that he or I believe in it.

Posted in: cognitive science of religion