Researchers study believing in God
LONDON (AP) - February 19, 2008 The grant to the Ian Ramsey Center for Science and Religion will
bring anthropologists, theologians, philosophers and other
academics together for three years to study whether belief in a
divine being is a basic part of mankind's makeup.
"There are a lot of issues. What is it that is innate in human
nature to believe in God, whether it is gods or something
superhuman or supernatural?" said Roger Trigg, acting director of
the center.
He said anthropological and philosophical research suggests that
faith in God is a universal human impulse found in most cultures
around the world, even though it has been waning in Britain and
western Europe.
"One implication that comes from this is that religion is the
default position, and atheism is perhaps more in need of
explanation," he said.
The study will be funded by the John Templeton Foundation, a
U.S.-based philanthropic organization that funds wide-ranging
research into questions that deal with the laws of nature and
issues of spirituality.
