"Murder in the Mind of God: The Violent Economics of Religion"
Tuesday, Mar. 20, 2018 from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Dr. Thomas B. Ellis, Professor, Department of Philosophy and Religion
Belk Library and Information Commons, Room 114, Appalachian State University
This event is free and open to the campus and community.
Violence abounds in the world. From injunctions to commit genocide to injunctions to commit filicide, gods certainly seem keen on devotees engaging in homicidal behaviors. Occasionally, such violence emanates from religious individuals and/or communities. While many apologists argue that religion is never the truly motivating factor, suggesting that other, secular motivations are afoot, such an argument flies in the face of the reality that many perpetrators cite religious texts conveying a god’s admonition to engage in murder.
Searching for an explanation of such seemingly untoward actions, this presentation by Dr. Thomas B. Ellis will address the scarce resource theory of religious violence. Such an approach helps explain not only why one religious tribe may wish to commit violence against another but also why individuals within a tribe would commit violence against one’s own tribal members including, shockingly enough, one’s own kin. This latter explanation requires amending the typical anthropological theory of costly signaling.
Ellis hopes to provide clarity to such suggestions in his talk, "Murder in the Mind of God: The Violent Economics of Religion."
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About the Department of Philosophy and Religion
The Department of Philosophy and Religion invites students to explore the world, examine beliefs, understand a diversity of worldviews and challenge the ideas and values that instruct our lives. The department offers a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and a Bachelor of Arts in religious studies, as well as a minor in both of these areas. The thinking and communication skills acquired through an undergraduate degree in Philosophy & Religion are important in all career pursuits and appeal to a variety of employers or may be used as a further specialized study.
Dr. Thomas B. Ellis, Professor, Department of Philosophy and Religion
Dr. Thomas B. Ellis, Professor, Department of Philosophy and Religion