Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence Quotes

“Religion facilitates terrorists' goals by providing moral legitimacy to their cause, as well.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“The ability of ritual to evoke both positive and negative affect is, of course, not specific to religion. Secular dances, concerts, and -raves- induce feelings of happiness and joy, and military boot camp elicits pain, shock, and awe. Such secular experiences have strong emotional impacts on participants also, particularly during adolescence.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“Terrorist training camps effectively employ fear, violence, and pain in rituals reminiscent of costly adolescent rites of passage.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“Just as violence constitutes a very effective proximate mechanism of religion; religion serves as an excellent proximate mechanism for violence, as well.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“The use of religion to transform local power struggles into cosmic conflicts benefits terrorist groups who may otherwise be viewed as economically and politically self-serving.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“All contemporary world religions impose a moral framework upon their adherents, thereby enabling terrorists to present their conflicts in morally absolute dichotomies, such as good versus bad or righteous versus evil. While legitimizing one's own cause, religions are particularly effective at demonizing those with opposing views. The history of religion is replete with examples in which in-group passions are aroused and out-group hatreds are dangerously ingnited.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“Throughout human evolution, successful religious systems have provided a mechanism for resolving collective action problems by engendering social cooperation, reducing in-group reactive aggression, and optimizing out-group proactive aggression.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“Since the price of aggression can be high, individual fitness depends on the ability to accurately calculate potential costs. This requires a reliable assessment of the condition, motivation, and intent of potential adversaries.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“Ongoing aggression not only impacts individuals, it also destabilizes social groups and disrupts functional social relationships. The uncertainty, ambiguity, and stress resulting from ongoing aggression and violence may impact the biological fitness of all group members.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence

“Viewing violence as an extreme form of aggression situates it on a spectrum of increasingly agonistic behaviors. Aggression has been described as -the behavioral weapon of choice for individuals to gain and maintain access to desired resources (food, territory, mating partners), defend themselves and their progeny from rivals and predators, and establish and secure social status/hierarchical relationships-. This is applicable across numerous species and is true of human aggression as well.”
― Candace Alcorta, Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion and Violence