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    Born Believers: The Science of Children's Religious Belief
    Born Believers: The Science of Children's Religious Belief
    Born Believers: The Science of Children's Religious Belief
    Ebook340 pages5 hours

    Born Believers: The Science of Children's Religious Belief

    By Justin L. Barrett

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Infants have a lot to make sense of in the world: Why does the sun shine and night fall; why do some objects move in response to words, while others won’t budge; who is it that looks over them and cares for them? How the developing brain grapples with these and other questions leads children, across cultures, to naturally develop a belief in a divine power of remarkably consistent traits––a god that is a powerful creator, knowing, immortal, and good—explains noted developmental psychologist and anthropologist Justin L. Barrett in this enlightening and provocative book. In short, we are all born believers.

    Belief begins in the brain. Under the sway of powerful internal and external influences, children understand their environments by imagining at least one creative and intelligent agent, a grand creator and controller that brings order and purpose to the world. Further, these beliefs in unseen super beings help organize children’s intuitions about morality and surprising life events, making life meaningful. Summarizing scientific experiments conducted with children across the globe, Professor Barrett illustrates the ways human beings have come to develop complex belief systems about God’s omniscience, the afterlife, and the immortality of deities. He shows how the science of childhood religiosity reveals, across humanity, a “natural religion,” the organization of those beliefs that humans gravitate to organically, and how it underlies all of the world’s major religions, uniting them under one common source.

    For believers and nonbelievers alike, Barrett offers a compelling argument for the human instinct for religion, as he guides all parents in how to effectively encourage children in developing a healthy constellation of beliefs about the world around them.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAtria Books
    Release dateMar 20, 2012
    ISBN9781439196571
    Born Believers: The Science of Children's Religious Belief
    Author

    Justin L. Barrett

    Justin Barrett is the author of Why Would Anyone Believe in God? A researcher associate of Oxford’s Centre for Anthropology and Mind, he is Thrive Professor of Developmental Science at Fuller Theological Seminary. Dr. Barrett lives in Pasadena, California.

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    • 3/5
      Received this book as ARC from Goodreads."The belief in God appears to be a naturally occurring human phenomenon" Agree or Disagree? Dr. Justin Barrett has written a thought provoking novel on the subject of children and faith. Are we born believing in a supreme being? Or is it something taught to us? This book is divided into two parts. Part one is labeled "The Evidence". It is primarily a listing of many studies Dr. Barrett used to explain his belief that we are all 'born believers'. He states (I am using a quote from an ARC- the actual quote in the published novel may be slightly different) "The vast majority of cultures, as well as the vast majority of people, believe in some sort of God or Gods" (page 21)He lists not only studies, but information obtained by observing children. I am not a theologian, nor an anthropologist. I found part one of this book to read like a textbook. Long and dry. Part two, "The Implications", was far more interesting to read. Dr. Barrett describes "natural religion". A term he uses to describe what we have from birth. He states this "natural religion" is in it's infancy. What's the most interesting? Chapter 10 explains his thoughts on Should we Introduce our Children to God? Now we are at the nitty gritty, the reason why I wanted to read this book. It was worth the wait. I learned a great deal. I found myself either nodding in response to something written, or shaking my head and thinking "Is he nuts?"Dr. Barrett offers some suggestions for encouraging children's religious development. I agree with some of what Dr. Barrett writes. In all honesty, there are some things I don't understand, and some things I think are outright strange. My thoughts- interesting book, but as as parent, no matter how many studies you throw my way...I'm not certain I believe Dr. Barrett's theories. It's comforting to think we are all born with previous knowledge of God, but I'm not certain I quite buy the idea. I think this is something theologians, philosophers and anthropologists may be arguing over for years.

    Book preview

    Born Believers - Justin L. Barrett

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