Did Man Create God? Is Your Spiritual Brain at Peace with Your Rational Brain?

by David Comings

Overview

Winner of USA Book News Best book for Religion and Finalist for Science. Recipient of the prestigious Mom's Choice Awards that honor excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. Unlike recent popular books that call for the end of faith and religion, this book by Dr. David Comings, an internationally renown physician, human geneticist and neuroscientist, proposes that spirituality is genetically hardwired into a specific part of the brain, is pleasurable, is critical to the evolution and survival of man, and will never go away. The primary goal of the book is to allow the reader to develop a rational spirituality in which their thinking brain and spiritual brain can live in peace. A basic assumption of most humans is that God created man and divinely influenced the writing of all his sacred books. This book dispassionately explores the possibility that in premodern times man created the theory of a personal God to answer questions about the physical world like, Where did we come from? Where do we go when we die? in order to satisfy the transcendent yearnings of our spiritual brain. In an era when politicians are judged on the basis of the strength of their belief in God, when schools are urged to teach Intelligent Design, and when religious terrorists threaten the existence of Western civilization it is critical to dispassionately examine the question Did God Create Man or Did Man Create God? The book examines a wide range of issues including intelligent answers to intelligent design; the relevance of modern cosmology to the existence or non-existence of god; the role of genes in spirituality; the evolution of spirituality; innate morality; the positive and negative aspects of religion; the problem of evil, and many others. Combined these chapters indicate that humans are inherently happy and good, independent of religion, and that spirituality played a critical role in the evolution and survival of man. A feeling of being associated with something that transcends one s self became an important, rewarding, comforting, and innate part of the human condition. Michael Shermer called this the most detailed and up-to-date science ever generated on the subject of religion and suggested it will be the definitive scientific reference on religion for some time to come. The world recently learned that Mother Theresa had life-long doubts about her faith. This book is for others who have also questioned any part of their faith but treasure their spirituality and want answers that are not hostile to religion. Dr. Comings concludes that religious intolerance, wars and terrorism are based on irrational spirituality where there is an incompatibility between the rational and spiritual brain, where individuals believe that one person s God is better than another's. By contrast a rational spirituality allows individuals of all religions to live in peace. This book is a potentially life changing read for anyone who has ever had doubts about their faith or religion but wanted responses that were sympathetic to their spiritual brain.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940013309296
Publisher:	Hope Press
Publication date:	10/13/2011
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	657
File size:	20 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Dr. Comings is a physician, neuroscientist, behavioral and molecular geneticist who was the Director of the Department of Medical Genetics at the City of Hope National Medical Center for 37 years before retiring in 2002. He is an internationally known scientist-physician who has written over 470 scientific articles and three books including Tourette Syndrome and Human Behavior. His research areas included cytogenetics, human behavioral and molecular genetics, and he ran a large behavioral medicine clinic specializing in Tourette Syndrome, ADHD and oppositional defiant behavior in children. He was past editor of the American Journal of Human Genetics and past president of the American Society of Human Genetics.

Editorial Reviews

It now appears that we are getting close to understanding what is going on inside the religious mind, and David Comings has written a remarkable analysis, that includes the most detailed and up-to-date science ever generated on the subject of religion. Did Man Create God? will be the definitive scientific reference on religion for some time to come.
Shermer is Publisher of Skeptic magazine and author of How We Believe, Why Darwin Matters & The Science of Good and Evil,

Michael Shermer

One of the most integrative, innovative and revolutionary books I have read in decades.

Dr. Michael A. Persinger, C. Psych Professor Department of Psychology and Biology, Laurentian University & author of Neuropsychological Bases of God Beliefs

Michael Persinger

Religion plays a huge part of everyone’s lives – but is it interfering too much with the sensible thought of the world? “Did Man Create God” believes so, but keeps a spiritual stance throughout it’s questioning of the world’s faith – stating that spirituality is a hard wired part of the brain of humanity. An objective look at religion as a whole, it tackles all concerns and issues with religion .Highly recommended for community libraries.

Tim Callahan

…There is a lot of science, and scientific attempts to explain the existence of God. Readers who take this approach are likely to enjoy reading this book and will probably want to delve into the various implications modern scientific theories have on spiritual questions. While the author is an atheist, readers who like linking science to spirituality will find this book enjoyable- no matter what their religious persuasion.

Muhammed Hassanali

The author writes that spirituality is an intrinsic biological trait controlled by genes and unique environment and is not determined by cultural influences such as religious education. He sums up by saying: Spirituality comes from within, and that people are often spiritual without necessarily being religious.

Stuart Nachbar