The Physiology of Propagating, Reinforcing, and Protecting Faith from Doubt

Believers are confident in the truth of their beliefs and regard faith in those beliefs not only as beneficial to their well-being in this life and the afterlife, but as necessary for it. They therefore generally consider spreading their faith to be beneficial—or even necessary—for everyone. Their religion itself may also encourage such propagation and promise rewards in the afterlife for those who engage in it.

Beyond this, the implementation of certain religious social rules becomes possible only when they are enacted as law, and this requires that a majority of the population—or at least a substantial proportion of it—believe in that religion, so that the enactment of religious laws does not encounter serious resistance. Particularly in this respect, it is not enough merely to spread the faith; the faith of existing believers must also be reinforced, so that they become more concerned with and committed to the enactment of religious laws. Someone who merely belongs to a religious community may care little about whether laws are religious or secular and may not even observe many of his religion’s personal commandments. But if he is reminded of his religious beliefs every day and repeatedly warned about his fate in the next world, he may become increasingly concerned with observing every detail of his religion’s commandments, in the hope of drawing ever closer to the salvation it promises. He may then also become a supporter of enacting religious laws, believing that this will further increase his prospects of well-being and salvation in this world and the next.

All of this can lead believers to feel a duty to spread their faith, reinforce the faith of their fellow believers, and prevent that faith from being shaken.

Throughout history, religious believers—perhaps through trial and error, and perhaps intuitively—have developed effective methods for propagating religion and reinforcing faith. Because of certain features of human psychology, these methods can exert considerable influence. Regardless of what beliefs are being promoted or instilled, and regardless of how true or false those beliefs may be, the methods themselves can affect people and produce the results expected by those who employ them. In other words, their effectiveness does not necessarily depend on the logical soundness or truth of the beliefs being promoted. Rather, it is the interaction between the method being used and the psychological characteristics of its audience that gives these methods their power.

Religious commandments and practices may likewise contribute to the propagation and reinforcement of faith and to protecting it from doubt and erosion.

In the following sections, we will examine these methods and the physiological mechanisms underlying their effectiveness.