A meme is an element of a culture or
system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another
by nongenetic means, especially imitation.
Dennett claims that memes are a very critical part of cultural
development and have been instrumental in the evolution of religion. Religion is cultural and social. This is how religion came to be as we know it
today. Someone told someone who told
someone about a god or gods and that was passed on to us today. We have divination and rituals that make up
some memes in religion. Divination is
seeking knowledge of the unknown through supernatural ways. Divination allows for the religious to give a
reason to why they did or did not do something.
It gives more reason to the unknown that we cannot explain. But Dennett thinks that we must owe something
in regards to our religion. Due to
evolution there must be some kind of give and take.
Another
example of a meme that Dennett uses is the one where a person is trying to
decide what is coming towards them. Is
it a man? Is it an animal? Or is it a tree walking? Because the event is frightening and puzzling
the person goes with the obvious answer that it must be a tree walking. This seems to be something that eases the
person’s mind which would explain an evolutionary reasoning as to why folk
religions arose. Evolution tells us that
we need to feel protected much like what religion does. Religion makes us feel protected in the sense
that we have a reason to do good, as Dennett talks about. Dennett uses this folk religion meme to
explain that perhaps religion was based on something that was never true, such
as a walking tree. But do we not have
reason to believe that Jesus was here on earth and is God is flesh form?
Rituals
are memes because they have been passed down through the ages. Participating and thinking of new rituals
help spread religion which makes us good stewards of religion. We must be good stewards of religion in order
for the religion to keep going and stay relevant to the world today. This leads to what the costs and benefits are
in religion. It seems the cost in
religion could be the human time and energy element and the benefit is to get
to heaven or perhaps have a personal fulfillment in one’s own life. These rituals must mean something to people
if they have stayed with mankind over the years. One can just go through the motions but it seems
there is something more along with it.
This goes along with Dennett’s belief in belief understanding of
religion. Sacrificing an animal to get
rain is more of a real religion to Dennett because you can easily see the give
and take. But in regards to more
organized religion, such as Catholicism, the mystery seems to be too much and
not a good enough reason of explanation.
What is really at stake for religion?
Why do we really need a reason for
believing what we believe, especially if it has been handed down for generations?
Are Shamans in touch more with the “real
world’ and religion in general more so than other organized religious groups?
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