What if religion was never really about belief, but about how we make meaning?
Trust in institutions like religion, law, science, and journalism is collapsing, yet some of the most demanding traditions, like Eastern Orthodoxy and the traditional Latin Mass, are growing as people seek ritual, discipline, and transformation. In this talk, John Vervaeke argues it is increasingly difficult to study human cognition without studying religion, pointing to the co-emergence of religion and human cognition, the importance of imaginal cognition, altered states and mystical experience, and non-propositional knowing in 4E cognitive science. He critiques first-generation cognitive science of religion for treating religions as irrational, belief-based "failed science" and for ignoring religious studies. Drawing on ethnography and genealogy, he argues that religions are porous, syncretistic ecologies of practice, that the "religion" construct is historically contingent, and that a process theory should ask how people become religious, including through credibility-enhancing displays.
In this talk, John explores:
- why religion continues to matter in a modern world that often considers itself increasingly secular
- how cognitive science has shaped, and sometimes limited, our understanding of religion
- the rise of the "imaginal" and its role in human cognition and religious experience
- why religion cannot be reduced to belief or explained simply as a cognitive byproduct
- how science and religion became divided through modern dichotomies
- why cognitive science needs to engage with insights from religious studies
- how religions are porous, interconnected, and shaped through historical exchange
- how Equus illustrates the relationship between sacred meaning and human experience
- why religion is better understood as an ecology of practices rather than a system of beliefs
- how credibility-enhancing displays (CREDs) shape participation in traditions
- how institutional trust, religious revival, and the contemporary "trust apocalypse" are connected
- how fluency and participation can open pathways toward mystical experience
00:00 Welcome To The Lectern
01:00 Religious Revival Paradox
02:00 Why Cognition Needs Religion
03:30 The Rise Of The Imaginal
06:00 Spiritual Not Religious
07:15 Early CogSci Religion Assumptions
09:45 Adaptation Vs Byproduct Debate
11:30 NOMA And Modern Dichotomies
15:00 Postmodern Critique Of Binaries
18:30 Why Consult Religious Studies
20:15 Religions Are Porous Not Pure
21:45 The Origin Of God Genealogy
27:00 Equus And Sacred Meaning
28:45 Equus In The Dark
30:30 Syncretism And Capitalism
31:30 Religion As Practice Ecology
32:45 CRED And Becoming Rational
35:45 Meaning Sacred And Apprenticeship
37:30 Process Theory Of Religion
41:00 Genealogy And Imperial Construct
44:00 Q&A Rejecting The Sacred
46:30 Institutions Trust And Revival
50:00 Beauty Fluency Mysticism
—
Explore courses and teachings from The Lectern
https://lectern.johnvervaeke.com/
Support the Lectern and join a growing community of wisdom seekers
https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke
Follow John Vervaeke: Website | Twitter | YouTube | Patreon
—
Thank you for listening!
What if religion was never really about belief, but about how we make meaning?
Trust in institutions like religion, law, science, and journalism is collapsing, yet some of the most demanding traditions, like Eastern Orthodoxy and the traditional Latin Mass, are growing as people seek ritual, discipline, and transformation. In this talk, John Vervaeke argues it is increasingly difficult to study human cognition without studying religion, pointing to the co-emergence of religion and human cognition, the importance of imaginal cognition, altered states and mystical experience, and non-propositional knowing in 4E cognitive science. He critiques first-generation cognitive science of religion for treating religions as irrational, belief-based "failed science" and for ignoring religious studies. Drawing on ethnography and genealogy, he argues that religions are porous, syncretistic ecologies of practice, that the "religion" construct is historically contingent, and that a process theory should ask how people become religious, including through credibility-enhancing displays.
In this talk, John explores:
- why religion continues to matter in a modern world that often considers itself increasingly secular
- how cognitive science has shaped, and sometimes limited, our understanding of religion
- the rise of the "imaginal" and its role in human cognition and religious experience
- why religion cannot be reduced to belief or explained simply as a cognitive byproduct
- how science and religion became divided through modern dichotomies
- why cognitive science needs to engage with insights from religious studies
- how religions are porous, interconnected, and shaped through historical exchange
- how Equus illustrates the relationship between sacred meaning and human experience
- why religion is better understood as an ecology of practices rather than a system of beliefs
- how credibility-enhancing displays (CREDs) shape participation in traditions
- how institutional trust, religious revival, and the contemporary "trust apocalypse" are connected
- how fluency and participation can open pathways toward mystical experience
00:00 Welcome To The Lectern
01:00 Religious Revival Paradox
02:00 Why Cognition Needs Religion
03:30 The Rise Of The Imaginal
06:00 Spiritual Not Religious
07:15 Early CogSci Religion Assumptions
09:45 Adaptation Vs Byproduct Debate
11:30 NOMA And Modern Dichotomies
15:00 Postmodern Critique Of Binaries
18:30 Why Consult Religious Studies
20:15 Religions Are Porous Not Pure
21:45 The Origin Of God Genealogy
27:00 Equus And Sacred Meaning
28:45 Equus In The Dark
30:30 Syncretism And Capitalism
31:30 Religion As Practice Ecology
32:45 CRED And Becoming Rational
35:45 Meaning Sacred And Apprenticeship
37:30 Process Theory Of Religion
41:00 Genealogy And Imperial Construct
44:00 Q&A Rejecting The Sacred
46:30 Institutions Trust And Revival
50:00 Beauty Fluency Mysticism
—
Explore courses and teachings from The Lectern
https://lectern.johnvervaeke.com/
Support the Lectern and join a growing community of wisdom seekers
https://www.patreon.com/johnvervaeke
Follow John Vervaeke: Website | Twitter | YouTube | Patreon
—
Thank you for listening!
