Does God Reside only in our Brains? |
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An open letter to Matthew Alper author of Dear Matthew, As I understand you, there is a part of the brain that experiences God. Therefore, you seem to be saying, the spiritual experience, hence God, resides in that part of the brain. Meaning that God does not exist apart from the human brain. It has always been my understanding that everything we experience is experienced because our brain cells fire, or don't fire. That is, without the brain, we wouldn't experience anything. You could knock out the part of the brain that sees the color red, a circular pattern, the motion of a waterfall, etc., and we wouldn't experience those things. Do those things exist inside the brain? Or do they exist in the environment and our brain functions in a way that allows us to perceive them? Well, psychologists argue about this. Is the environment structured and our brains pick-up that structure, or does the brain provide the structure to the environment. Even if you think the second thesis is the right one, it seems to me that there would still have to be something in the environment for our brains to pick-up so that the brain could structure it. We could get into the philosophical arguement that we are living in a virtual reality, and none of this is real. I do not understand that arguement, so will not go there. I don't think this is what you are espousing either. So, when a part of the brain fires or does not fire during a spiritual experience does that mean that nothing of the experience exists outside of the brain? I think not. At least it doesn't prove that this is the case. It seems to me that God could be an entity separate from our brains, and that while we are alive as a human being with a body and brain, we need the brain to experience God. So, a part of the brain devoted to the God experience, and an external God are not mutually exclusive. Now to your agruement that all cultures seem to have this God part of the brain. Well, all cultures perceive colors, shapes, and motion. We don't assume that they perceive these things for any other reason than that those things, or some form of them, are out there. Why should God be different? On the other hand, our emotions, such as love, fear, anger, reside in our brains. They are not "out there." They also can be attributed to a part of the brain. In other words, without a certain part of the brain we would not experience certain emotions. Is the God experience an emotion? An emotion we bring on when we pray or meditate? But even emotions take an object which is outside of our brains. This does not consititute evidence for the non-existence of God. It is impossible to prove the non-existence of anything. So, why Matthew, are you telling us that God is just a function of our brains? Are you saying that God does not exist? None of this tells us whether or not there is a God. It only tells us that there is a part of our brain that allows us to experience God. That is all the evidence tells us. Heck, we know that we don't experience anything without the brain. So, what's all the fuss about? The other part of your thesis, that we humans couldn't face the thought of death, so evolution equiped us with the belief in an afterlife, is pure speculation. There is no evidence for this. Maybe those not familiar with the "brain" literature will be surprised that there is a part of the brain that processes the God exerience, and for them your book will contain valuable information, but they should not worry that this news negates the existence of God. It does no such thing. Sincerely, Patricia Alfano, Ph.D. |