Historical story

Gods and nature

In cultures that have to survive in a harsh climate where it is difficult to get food, people believe in stricter, personal gods. This is a phenomenon that scholars of religion have known for a long time, but now it has also been confirmed by… a computer model.

Throughout history, people have worshiped various kinds of gods. If you look at that from a considerable distance, those gods can be divided into two categories. On one side are distant gods, who created the world but no longer interfere with it. They do not judge and are hardly concerned with people's lives. Nature gods from Africa, for example.

On the other hand, there are gods who created the world and regularly interfere with it. This other species are strict, personal gods. People are accountable to them and with people who do not follow certain rules, things can go wrong. An example is the god of Judaism or certain beliefs within Christianity. Within these two extremes, of course, there are many intermediate forms.

Where do all these different kinds of gods come from? Why does one culture worship a stern, personal god and another see more of a distant nature god? That is a discussion that religious scholars are involved in. It has been known for some time that strict, personal gods appear more often in societies that have a higher degree of political hierarchy and social complexity. After all, a complex society needs rules, and the belief in a strict god who supervises those rules is a good binding agent for such a society.

Unfriendly environment

But what about ecological factors? After all, a rougher climate leads more quickly to a complex organization. Would there also be a connection between climate and the experience of God? It's obvious, but it's hard to prove. To find out, American evolutionary biologists made a computer program. With this they mapped out the factors that influence the choice for a strict or aloof god. They described the results in the scientific journal PNAS.

The Americans examined the perception of God of a large number of (historical) societies worldwide and compared it with data on matters such as climate, temperature variations, presence of wild animals and the availability of food. Indeed, as expected, there appeared to be a strong connection between the presence of a stern deity and political complexity. Also, according to the computer model, the probability of a strict god was greater in societies that have less access to water and food and in societies that lived in a changeable and harsh climate. The influence of various factors thus became apparent. There seems to be a clear connection from the model:Severe gods arise in a rough climate. The model could predict the kind of god that would arise somewhere with 91% certainty.

A shared belief in a personal god can help allay fear and thus improve the ability of a society to survive in a dangerous and unfriendly environment. This is the first time that a link between ecology and religion has been demonstrated in this way. Can complex historical and cultural developments really be explained in this way? Not exhaustive, because every situation is unique and must be examined individually in order to be able to say something meaningful on a case-by-case basis. But computer models can help humanities scientists to gain an overview of difficult cultural and historical issues.