Religions of the World According to Jesse Berring

Name:
Professor’s name:
Course:
Date:
Religions of the World
The psychologist, Jesse Berring, posits that believing in God is an evolutionary process that plays a significant role in the interaction and integration of human beings across the different social dimensions. The evolutionary process begins with the development of the thought of a supernatural being watching over individual actions and thus dictating how they operate or relate with each other in society towards the promotion of social good. The psychologist’s study on the behavior of children and their adult counterparts with and without physical supervision of another human being and with a perceived supervision of a supernatural being reiterates on the influence of the a person’s belief in God or supernatural being in their lives CITATION Spi10 \l 1033 (Spiegel). The belief in the supernatural presence or God influences peoples’ behavior towards social good and promotes cooperation for the achievement of the same in society CITATION Spi10 \l 1033 (Spiegel). One would argue for the hypothesis by arguing that a person’s or society’s belief in the supernatural creates an unspoken code of conduct in reverence to God or the supernatural belief system embraced by a given group of people. The belief system is integral to the cultural orientation of members of a given group as it dictates how they relate to each other in their daily lives. Such is the case for a majority of the religions in the world as they are characteristic of unique ways of doing things, most of which advocate for people’s well-being at both the individual and collective levels. The experiment, however, fails to highlight the detailed manifestations of the supernatural belief system to address the differences witnessed in some of the values and principles upheld by different religious groups concerning their relationship to God or whatever is their revered supernatural being.
The puberty ceremony makes for a significant point of transition among the Apache girls into womanhood. The four-day ceremony is a traditional rite of passage in the community held after they have experienced their first menstrual and functions to bring them closer to the community’s model woman, Esdzanadehe CITATION Nun16 \l 1033 (Nunez). The transition from boyhood to manhood among the Maasai community is also characteristic of ritual activities such as spending the night in the forest for the potential initiates, singing, dancing, and eating large volumes of meet. Circumcision of the boys marks or rather completes the transition into manhood, which allows them to carry out the responsibilities of a warrior and the community’s protector. Such practices are rare in today’s world with only the conservative communities still pursing such rites of passage. One of the rites of passage in today’s world that is symbolic of the transition from childhood to adulthood is the prom night event or ceremony. The event features both high school seniors and juniors with a themed formal dressing among participants for both ma...