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“Religion is paradoxical. It emerged out of intergroup competition, yet it has a remarkable power to unite. It sets people apart from one another, yet can also draw vastly different people together. Long ago we envisioned relationship with spiritual beings. In one sense these relationships were very mundane -they served practical human needs. The practical side of these relationships is also the source of their power to divide us, to pit one group against another. The divine side is in their capacity to quietly but persistently call us to transcend ourselves and find common ground for trust.”

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Book:Supernatural Selection: How Religion Evolved
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“Human communities -power- themselves with resources. Material resources such as water, fuel, iron ore, wheat stocks, etc., are essential for this. However, psychological resources -knowledge, loyalty, willpower, communal bonds, emotional commitment, etc. - are necessary as well.”

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Book:Ritual in Human Evolution and Religion: Psychological and Ritual Resources
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