Football, Religion, and Politics

“Moral systems are interlocking sets of values, virtues, norms, practices, identities, institutions, technologies, and evolved psychological mechanisms that work together to suppress or regulate self-interest and make cooperative societies possible.” 
– Jonathon Haidt

Why do the students sing, chant, dance, sway, chop, and stomp so enthusiastically during a football game? Showing support for their football team may help to motivate the players, but is that the primary function of these behaviors? Are they done in order to assure victory? No. These behaviors serve a very different function, and it is the same one can be seen at work in most religious rituals: the creation of a community.

A college football game is a terrific analogy for religion. From a simple perspective, focusing only on what is most visible, college football is an extravagant, costly, wasteful institution that impairs people’s ability to think rationally while leaving a long trail of victims (including the players themselves, plus the many fans who suffer alcohol-related injuries). But from a sociologically informed perspective, it is a religious rite that does just what it is supposed to do: it pulls people up from the profane to the sacred. It makes people feel, for a few hours, that they are “a part of.”

Religions are also social sects. Religion cannot be studied in lone individuals. A religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden— beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community called a Church, all those who adhere to them.

Many misunderstand religion because they ignore this principle and examine only what is most visible. They focus on individuals and their supernatural beliefs, rather than on groups and their binding practices. They conclude that religion is an extravagant, costly, wasteful institution that impairs people’s ability to think rationally while leaving a long trail of victims. At times, religions fit that description. But to be fair — and understand religion’s relationship to morality and politics— we must first describe it accurately.

Supernatural agents do of course play a central role in religion, just as the actual football is at the center of the whirl of activity on game day. But trying to understand the persistence and passion of religion by studying beliefs about God is like trying to understand the persistence and passion of college football by studying the movements of the ball. You’ve got to look at the ways that religious beliefs work with religious practices to create a religious community – much like we look at political ideologies and how they work with political policy-making to create a political party.

Believing, doing, and belonging are three complementary yet distinct aspects of religiosity. When you look at all three aspects at the same time, you get a view of the psychology of religion that’s very different. It says that the function of those beliefs and practices is ultimately to create a community – just like a church congregation, football fans or political party members. Quite often our beliefs are post hoc constructions designed to justify what we’ve just said or done, and/or to support the groups we belong to. Although not all people believe in God, God pervades our intellectual, political, and popular culture. For example, people say, “God bless you” when others sneeze. In the political environment, each session in U.S. Congress begins with a prayer (there’s even a U.S. House of Representatives chaplain), and many politicians conclude speeches with, “God bless America.” The Pledge of Allegiance contains clear references to God and “In God We Trust” appears on U.S. paper money.

Looking at external factors and how they mesh with internal psychology brings us right back to Haidt’s definition of moral systems (above) with moral capital referring to the degree to which a community possesses interlocking sets of values, virtues, norms, practices, identities, institutions, and technologies that enable the community to suppress or regulate selfishness and make cooperation possible.

Haidt, Jonathan (2012). The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion. Random House, Inc.

How is a moral system different from a religion? How is religiosity linked with intellect, emotional intelligence, and levels of education? 

How can religiosity and political party affiliation be seen as examples of “Groupthink” (a way of deliberating that group members use when their desire for unanimity overrides their motivation to assess all available plans of action)? What are the dangers of Groupthink and how can they be prevented? 

Thoughts?