Are we Born Believers?

Dr. Eyad Qunaibi Peace be upon you Dear viewers, in the previous episode we explained the bundle of innate components that presents a dilemma for the atheist which he evades by denying the existence of these components or by giving them a materialistic explanation Today, we will discuss the atheistic view on the first component: Religiosity i.e. the human realization that there is a Ruling Creator for him and this universe and the desire to worship this Creator: getting close to Him, sensing our need of Him, and resorting to Him in hardship From the Islamic perspective this tendency is a self-evident truth. In many Quranic verses Allah Almighty says, what can be translated as, “And when affliction touches Man, he calls upon Us” (Quran 10:12) "Man" in general terms, because this is an ingrained disposition in every human When we say religiosity is an innate component we mean it's a deeply-rooted intrinsic component of the human soul and an authentic part of its formation Its roots are present from birth; irrespective of external influences Initially, the atheist denied this natural inclination to religiosity saying, "No! People’s belief in the existence of a Creator is a result of upbringing influences and passed down through generations but if humans are left to themselves they wouldn't have any tendency to believe in the existence of a Creator." The atheist also tells you, “There are many myths; each with its group of followers: like Santa Claus, who rides in in a flying sleigh on Christmas Eve, the fire-breathing dragon, etc." Our response is: "Even if we ignore the fact that mythical beliefs have no evidence while EVERYTHING indicates the existence of a Creator —as we will show in this series Allah willing— there is a world of difference —in perception— between mythical beliefs fed to children; which they later discover to be total fabrications —lacking any proof— and laugh at themselves because they used to believe in them: Such as dragons, Santa Claus or myths believed by people in certain geographical locations and passed down through generations On the other hand, religiosity: This deeply-rooted feeling people find in themselves; even those who deny this feeling desperately grapple with themselves to deny it but its question haunts them and imposes itself; forcing them to desperately seek materialistic explanations for it This predisposition towards religion in the human psyche is confirmed by studies in Anthropology and Sociology It has become common in many studies to refer to the innate nature of religion by saying, "Religion is hardwired in humans." Meaning: It is an intrinsic component in humans intertwined with their flesh and blood; like arteries and nerves This is a truth deeply-rooted in history Even the Greek biographer Plutarch said, "If we traverse the world, it is possible to find cities without walls, without letters, without kings, without wealth, without coin, without schools and theaters; but a city without a temple, or that practiseth not worship, prayer and the like, no one ever saw." (Plutrach) This matter, dear viewers, doesn't require studies or historical analysis but is something the human finds in himself: That if he falls into hardship he gets a strong feeling which he cannot ignore that there is a Supreme Power Who can save him and he finds himself calling and resorting to his Lord to relieve him! Hence the Western proverb: "There are no atheists in foxholes." Foxholes mean war trenches where soldiers are exposed to life-threatening danger The atheist might stubbornly deny this You may find a group of cowardly soldiers —in no real danger— killing and raping civilians for fun while putting up signs that say, "Atheists in foxholes" Some atheists arrogantly insist that they do not need God; even cursing God; Whom they don't believe even exists! How can they curse what "doesn't exist"?! Their sickening repetition of such expressions; without rhyme or reason indicates a conflicted psyche struggling to suppress the deep voice within Otherwise, they wouldn't need all this noise; especially since the atheist does not expect a reward in the Afterlife for publicizing his belief, nor does he have absolute moral motives to save people from the "delusion" of believing in a God —according to his viewpoint— To fill the void which results from denying this innate component which imposes itself upon them; they began to establish atheist congregations with rituals remarkably similar to religious congregations: known as "atheist churches" which began to spread in many countries such as the US, Canada and Britain as a conscious or unconscious expression of this innate component Indeed, Ibn Al-Qayyim was right in saying, “There is a need in the heart that nothing can fill but Allah Almighty, and there is disunity in it that can only be unified by returning to Him, and there is a sickness in it that can only be cured by faithfully worshiping only Him." So, we are not talking about dragons or Santa Claus; but about a deeply-rooted feeling that people across the ages have found within themselves: A persistent question in the denier's head demanding an answer; again and again A belief which the components of the innate bundle work jointly to direct to and serve as we explained in the last episode; We are not talking about myths which neither relate to the innate bundle nor complement it An atheist might say, "Humans enjoy feelings of dominance: A male may feel a desire to sexually assault a female Yet you, believers in Allah, consider this a bad tendency." We respond, "The human tendency to follow whims and desires does not refute our argument Even if some people are inclined to vice; they do not defend such tendencies or deem them right but admit that they are evil tendencies The innate component here: The moral tendency includes the admission that illicit desires are bad The human being knows that these tendencies are wrong by innate nature Hence, it is an argument for us; not against us! Many atheists admitted that religiosity and belief in the existence of a God, goes beyond external and environmental influences and is a central element in humans What did they do then? Did they believe? No! Because atheism does not look for the truth Instead, when their beliefs are refuted they look for an alternative ANYTHING except belief in Allah They said, "The tendency to believe in a Creator does not necessarily have to be the truth It might be a delusion resulting from randomness: A naturally-selected trait to help humans survive And we will look for a material explanation for religiosity." Indeed, new fields of study began to emerge to study this phenomenon For example, a new brand of Neuroscience emerged: Neurotheology! A field devoted to researching the link between the nervous system and the phenomenon of religiosity They even searched for "the gene" responsible for religiosity! The American geneticist Dean Hamer published a book in 2005 titled, "The God Gene: How Faith Is Hardwired into Our Genes" which discusses how faith is part of our genes You will find publications on the search for the part of the brain responsible for belief in a Creator, such as Matthew Alper's, "The God Part of the Brain" i.e. the faith part of the brain First, note that these atheists did not seek materialistic explanations for people's belief in dragons or any other silly example given by atheists when they said, "You assume there is a God Anyone can assume anything: like a flying spaghetti monster, a teapot orbiting space, etc." Because there is a world of difference between these silly examples and beliefs and the intrinsic religiosity that is deeply-rooted in humans! But wait, atheists! What are you doing? "We are looking for a materialistic explanation for religiosity." Okay Let's assume you can find a materialistic explanation for religiosity; you still have to find materialistic explanations for all the other innate components that we discussed in the previous episode We will see, when we present the free will episode the invalidity of trying to provide a genetic materialistic explanation for everything and how such explanations turn to foolish nonsense! Yet we say, "Let's assume that you do find genes for religiosity, others for mental necessities, a third set for morality, a fourth for instincts, a fifth for sense of purpose, and a sixth for free will —which seems paradoxical, like saying: "Genes force you to be free!"— But let's assume you do find all these genes; How do explain this coordinated directed bundle which guides people to believe in a Creator, love His worship, and seek refuge in Him; with the mental necessities to understand His requirements, the moral tendencies in harmony with His commandments, a sense of purpose motivating humans to follow them, free will to choose to obey or disobey Him, and instincts to ensure human survival on Earth during this trial period! It is as if your "randomness" worships our Lord!!! Even if you do find this bundle then it is more evidence for the greatness of our Creator: Who instilled it in humans, integrated its components, and made it aligned with His commandments! Atheistic arrogance answers, "All these tendencies don't necessarily mean anything and their existence does not mean that they are valid." In fact, dear viewers, even though our explanations are sufficient for those who seek guidance we will continue to debate the atheist as this discussion has benefits. We'll see in the coming episodes; the consequences of the claim by the atheist: That what the human finds in himself from these components doesn't give them a value of truth! Our next stop is: Mental necessities It is an important episode with ample benefit, Allah willing So stay tuned... May the peace and mercy of Allah be upon you The Journey of Certainty Prepared & Presented by: Dr. Eyad Qunaibi Filming & Supervision: Abdel-Hamid Shams El-Deen Graphics Implementation: Muhammad Shabsough