… I argue that cognitive neuroscience can allow for better use of religious experience. … Justin
Barrett concluded from a number of experiments that humans often “believe what they shouldn’…

… science. As such, Catholicism is emphasized, though the empirical studies drawn on use
samples from diverse religious … the context in ways that facilitate accuracy, to think through new …

… search of the American Theological Library Association (… field of cognitive theory and the
ecology of cognition suggest … , see Atran 2002; Barrett 1999; Boyer 1994, 1999). Using it as a …

… Additionally, this research contributes to a growing body of work on anthropomorphism within
the cognitive science of religion literature. This body of work indicates that although people …

… Importantly, the method does not constrain any particular … (see Barrett 1999 for a discussion
of this difference in the … of religion and science: the Creeds developed by theologians, the …

… calls Theology A and Theology B. Theology B, or “religious theology,” he defines as the study
of … have been constrained by) culturally ingrained ways of human thinking and behaving. …

… , but the increase in accuracy might reflect the desire to gain … it comes to scientific and
theological claims. As a consequence, it … Barrett (1999) found that Christians understand religious …

… religious and moral cognition. … “theologically correct” answers when asked to reason
about God’s mind (ie, that God’s mind is strikingly different from humans’ minds; Barrett, 1999). …

… ) the mechanisms and constraints underlying belief change. I … what kinds of cognitive
processes generated belief and what … not just the potential for accuracy in metacognition, but the …

… Barrett has repeatedly found that adherents of a monotheistic faith will often describe a variety
of “theologically … The latter stipulate and constrain the range of acceptable experiences for …