Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon

apophaticism in

belief in

belief in integrity of

as blabbermouth who ruins a movie

can it study religion?

conceptual revisions in

constraints on method of

controversies in

disconfirmation in

everything in Nature as topic of

“hard” versus “soft, ”

inquiry destroying its object

Islamist view of

as “just another religion, ”

as making the familiar strange

natural versus interpretive

outmoded terminology in

practical knowledge versus

as reliable source of knowledge

religious people using

research on religion

should it study religion?

taboo against examination of religion by

understanding versus believing propositions of

what pays for science?

See also social science

science fiction

science studies

Scientology

Seabright, Paul

séances

search engines

sea squirts

Second Coming of Christ

secondhand smoke

second law of thermodynamics

second-order intentionality

secrets

secular humanism

secularism

secularization

segregation

self, letting go of

self-causation

self-help

self-interest

Selfish Gene, The (Dawkins)

selflessness

self-selection in survey response

semiotics

semipropositional representations

Sen, Amartya

Sentinelese

separation of church and state

September

Serbs

settlements on “holy soil, ”

sexiness

sexism

sexuality, study of

sexually transmitted diseases

sexual reproduction, evolutionary explanation of

sexual revolution

sexual-selection theories

Shakers

Shakespeare, William

shamans

and disconfirmation

guilds of

as hypnotists

as mutualist

public rituals of

sharks

Sharlet, Jeffrey

Shea, Christopher

sheep, wild

Shehadeh, Raja

Sherfey, John

Sherlockians

Shermer, Michael

Shinto

Shiva

Shroud of Turin

sick-minded people

Siegel, Lee

Sikhs

Silver, Mitchell

Simpsons, The,

SIS

skepticism

and benign effects of religion

skepticism (cont.)

examination welcomed by

about folk religion

hostility toward

politeness overwhelming

strategies for combating

Skeptic Society

Skinner, B. F.

skyscrapers

sleight-of-hand

smallpox

Smith, Chuck

Smith, John Maynard

Smith, Joseph

smoking

sneezing reflex

soccer

social conflict, religion exploiting

social insects

social interaction, strategic information and

social science

evolutionary approach distrusted by

memetics and

moral judgments in

natural sciences versus

premature curiosity satisfaction in

religion studied in

in science studies

See also anthropology; psychology

sociology solidarity

somebody is watching over you, belief that

Sorcerer’s Apprentice

sortilege

soul

Cartesian

immortality of

Jivaro beliefs about

materialist view of

sound bites

Soviet Union

Sower, parable of the

space, change in concept of

space aliens example

spam, e-mail

Spaniards in Western Hemisphere

specie

speech acts

spells

Sperber, Dan

sperm cells

Spinoza, Benedict

spirits

spirituality

craving for

gene for

religiousness versus

Spong, John Shelby

sports

allegiance to teams

as natural phenomenon

teams as coalitions not based on genetic kinship

Stark, Rodney

Statue of Liberty

Steadman, Lyle B.

stem-cell research

Sterelny, Kim

Stern, Jessica

Sternberg, Emily

Stevens, George

stewardship

of beliefs

conditional

of democracy

evolution of

of memes

not all practices requiring

stickers on biology textbooks

stories

straight line, drawing

strategic information

strategic secrets

structuralism

Stupak, Bart

subliminal motivations

submission

sugar industry

Sulloway, Frank

summum bonum,

sunsets

Superman

supernatural

the in definition of religion

divine essences versus

and everyday morality

evil agents

good associated with

as opposed to natural

as path to fulfillment

sleight-of-hand moves for creating

witches

supernormal stimuli

super-organisms

superstition

supply-side economics

surrogate mothers

surveys

suspension bridges

sweets

liking for

sweet-tooth theories of religion

swimming

swimming pools

symbionts

symbols, defilement of

systematic invulnerability to disproof

Â

taboo trade-offs

Taliban

talking ax

Tana Island

Taoism

tasseography

Taubes, Gary

team spirit

invention of

as obvious good

as raison d’être of religion

technology for causing global catastrophe

communications

ecological circumstances altered by

global onslaught of Western

potential to act increased by

reliability of

science and

Temple (Jerusalem)

Templeton Foundation

tempting

Ten Commandments

tension

tenure

terminology, outmoded

terrorism

testable hypotheses

testimonials

Tetlock, Philip

textbooks, stickers on biology

theocracy

theological research

Theos

thinking about thinking

third-order intentionality

Thompson, D’Arcy

Tillich, Paul

time, change in concept of

Time magazine

Tinbergen, Niko

Titon, Jeff Todd

tobacco. See smoking tolerance

Tooth Fairy

torture

Town Meeting

Toxoplasma gondii

tradition

animal

erosion of

loyalty to

misplaced respect for

respecting

revision of

Transcendental Meditation

transcendent values

Transformation of American Religion, The (Wolfe)

translation, indeterminacy of radical

transubstantiation

trial and error

tribal people

tribal religion

design in

See also folk religion “tried and true, ”

triggered production

Trouble with Islam, The (Manji)

Trudgen, Arthur

trust

group living and

mutual

religion strengthening bonds of

truth(s)