Genes contribute to religious inclination

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7147 ^ | 3/16/05 | Maggie McKee

[little jeremiah]

The whole natural selection idea is merely that - an idea.

God does not choose some souls to love and serve Him and some to rot in hell. It's OUR choice. He gave us free will - not that we are free agents and can do anything and everything; after all, we are subject to the the harsh laws of the material world.

But we do have this choice: to surrender to His will in our hearts, and in our lives the best we can, or we can remain the lords of our own lives. That's our free will.

The story of the Prodigal Son is our story. Only mostly we're still eating the swill.

God wants every soul to be happily re-united with Him, not just a few.

This whole "my genes made me do it" stuff is very theoretical. How about this - when I change my consciousness, it creates brain changes? How about I have the free will to drink or not drink alcohol, even if I have (genetically speaking) the proneness towards alcoholism? The bottom line is that consciousness comes from the living soul, not from the meat puppet. The flesh and blood is merely the vehicle, not the source of consciousness.

[little jeremiah]

It is indeed our choice. Why did Jesus tell the story of the Prodigal Son? He told it to instruct us that we can indeed choose to serve God, or to continue to reject Him.

The son chose to reject his father and attempt to enjoy the world independently, and when he learned his lesson and chose to return to his father as a menial servant, he was accepted as a son.

That story is for us.

To say we don't have a choice is serious misunderstanding of the free will God has given each and every soul.

[KC_for_Freedom]

Well, a desire to belong to a group is likely in our genetic make up. True loners are few and far between. Mankind has survived by joining groups and family units.

A desire to be in a group can lead to the joining of a religious group. the article says 40%.

This is not a strong correlation. But it may be somewhat true.

[little jeremiah]

One can choose to pray, choose to beg for mercy, choose to follow the instructions of God, choose to open one's heart or choose to close it up.

One can choose to read scripture, or choose to watch porno or junk TV. One can choose to associate with others who are interested in a relationship with God, or choose to hang out with atheists, secularists, blasphemers, and those to whom sin and vice are a way of life.

One can choose to remember God, His words, His promises, and His holy name within one's heart, or focus instead on "me me me" and the desires of the mind and body.

There are so many choices, and we are offered these choices every second of every day.

It said that if one takes on step towards God, He will take hundreds or thousands towards us. This is nothing more than the truth. He loves all souls unconditionally - there is nothing we could ever do to earn His love. He loves us just like the father of the wastrel son.

Now it's up to us to try to love Him. By thinking of Him, His words, His instructions, His name - this is like going out in the sunlight. Naturally, if we go out in the sunlight, we'll warm up. If we choose to warm up in the light of God, we'll become the good children of God we are meant to be - not on our own strength, but because we place ourselves under His protection.