Being a young scholar convinced of the importance of not drawing conclusions without good evidence, I was reluctant to claim that I had discovered anything-at least not yet-but his inquiry required an answer. I went to India as a psychologist studying people’s concepts of gods. Eventually our talk turned to my purpose in visiting India. The clean-looking Brahmin with a thick black mustache initiated a lengthy conversation with me, offering explanations of various aspects of Hinduism. “He’s a saint,” a well-dressed man across the aisle commented, noticing my gaze. In contrast with his bald crown, grizzled hairs carpeted his exposed shoulder, arms, and legs. Nearby was a middle-aged man dressed in a single bright orange cloth draped over one shoulder like a toga. I sat uncomfortably on the squeaky, sticky, turquoise-colored vinyl seat and glanced at my fellow travelers. Inside, amber dust eddies scampered down the aisles and among the rows. THE HOT SEASON HAD begun, and the sun bleached the barren landscape outside the train from Agra to Jaipur, India. 'synopsis' may belong to another edition of this title. He shows how the science of childhood religiosity reveals, across humanity, a “natural religion,” the organization of those beliefs that humans gravitate to organically, and how it underlies and unites all of the world’s major religions.įor believers and nonbelievers alike, Barrett offers a compelling argument for the human instinct for religion, as he guides all parents in how to effectively encourage children in developing a healthy constellation of beliefs about the world around them.

Summarizing scientific experiments conducted with children across the globe, Professor Justin Barrett illustrates the ways human beings have come to develop complex belief systems about God’s omniscience, the afterlife, and the immortality of deities.

Further, these beliefs in unseen super beings help organize children’s intuitions about morality and surprising events, making life meaningful. How the developing brain grapples with these and other questions leads children, across cultures, to imagine at least one creative and intelligent agent, a grand creator and controller that brings order and purpose to the world. Infants have a lot to make sense of in the world: Why does the sun shine and night fall why do some objects move in response to words, while others won’t budge who looks over them and cares for them? “A masterful discussion of whether children are born with a natural ability to exercise faith in God” ( Publishers Weekly, starred review).

Born Believers by Justin L. Barrett