Being Religious Makes You Less Intelligent.

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It is well known that the strength of religious belief in countries is inversely related to its average IQ. I'm not necessarily saying that believing in God makes you less intelligent, but I believe that people with a low intelligence are more easily drawn towards religion, which gives answers that are certain, while people with a high intelligence are more skeptical. Any thoughts?

chaew

22 May 2008 08:09

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“Being Religious Makes You Less Intelligent.”
If your including all religions like evolution?

v00v

03 Nov 2008 01:46

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I agree. Doesn't make you stupid. But more likely to fall for it. Look at 3rd world country, there's all religious.

iLoveJesus

27 Aug 2008 01:06

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Being religous has nothing to do with being a third world country, it has to do with the idiots running the country.

freakyboy

16 Sep 2008 18:07

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I think if you're raised in a heavily religious household then those beliefs could restrain an individuals desire to understand natural sciences because God is an adequate answer for everything, so it is partially true yes. But look at the Jesuit priests, the elite of the Christian faith. They aren't exactly dumb.

Jakers

22 May 2008 20:37

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Hidell that's exactly why I won't even join Mensa, because of the elitist, ignorant stuff they put out. In the world there are hundreds of thousands of scientist, geologist, paleontologist, geneticist, doctors, lawyers..... On and on who are not only intelligent, but would easily qualify for Mensa, that are religious...ridiculously stupid studies are put out everyday, have the discernment, to know the difference or intelligent people will be questioning yours. The Bible is a book of wisdom....it's not a book for trivial, unless after this life information. Please look up the difference in wisdom and knowledge....

stever

22 May 2008 17:25

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The debate topic is poorly phrased, yet the underlying point is sound. There is an inverse relationship between intelligence and religiosity. It has been demonstrated by numerous studies and is referred to in a meta-analysis published in Mensa magazine a few years ago. But I'm sure you already know this as Richard Dawkins mentions it in his book "The God Delusion", and most of your unoriginal thinking seems to come from there.

Hidell

22 May 2008 13:27

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Oh God I'm sorry that I allude to a great scientist instead of make ridiculous unsupported claims like you do. I don't think I'm too good to debate based on someone else's work, firstly; and secondly, 'The God Delusion' is not where my thinking comes from. This is something that I've considered for years and recently decided to research.

Debate titles have to be short and bold and explain the point of the debate, and I fail to see how this is poorly phrased. I'm sorry if you don't understand basic English; I mean that the state of being a religious person increases the likelihood of you also being someone of a lower intelligence quotient.

Please do not try to insult my intelligence or patronise me again.

chaew

22 May 2008 14:30

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It is ironic that in your childish response in which you try to enforce your superior intelligence over me you present an argument riddled with errors.

Definition of alllude: make a more or less disguised reference to; "He alluded to the problem but did not mention it".

There is a subtle difference between reference and allusion and my indirect mention could have been backed up with a citation of Dawkins' work had I been asked, but I haven't been yet.

Definition of plagiarism: stealing someone else's ideas and presenting them as your own.

At no point did I present this as my new findings or try to claim it as my own idea. It appears that you don't understand the nature of debate if you think that basing a premise on an idea that others may have had already is plagiarism.

I would also appreciate it if you didn't refer to me as participating in 'cheap adolescent spitefulness' as not only do you have no idea how old I am, my relationship with other debaters on this site is of no relevance to the matter at hand. You patronise me as if you are the source of all wisdom.

I have never insulted you personally Hidell and I think you should question your place on a debating website if you just use it to try and insult everyone's intelligence instead of making decent debate responses.

And one last thing, I still maintain that my debate is adequately phrased to convey my point. I believe that to an extent the causation does run in this direction as religion can encourage people to subscribe to less intelligent or rational views, which I put simply as being less intelligent.

I hope we can resolve our dispute amicably and try to agree with one another in future debates. As two strong atheists it would be better that we unite and use our knowledge to make great debate responses.

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Oh because it's not absurd to the highest degree that nutrition can affect your intelligence quotient!? Food can only stimulate your brain and help you learn better but it cannot improve your intelligence.

And how is it that embracing a certain set of opinions cannot make you a less intelligent person? If I choose to believe that the Earth is flat then it makes me less intelligent. Intelligence is the ability to comprehend; to understand and profit from experience which means that dismissing known truths about the universe means you are a less intelligent person.

I do not always choose debates related to one Dawkins book, I have read hundreds of research books over the years. Let's agree that arguing with each other is just futile and terminate this argument. At least I know I'm looking down on you from up here, it's called the moral high ground. I offered you the chance to forget the things we said to each other, but no; you decided to carry on with the cheap insults and patronising language - "little chaew".

You made your choice.

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I'm not even disputing that Hidell. I said that it can stimulate your brain, in the way of inducing neurone connections which I guess agrees with your point that it can affect one's IQ. I'm arguing that good nutrition cannot improve the level of intelligence which has already been dictated by genetics, but malnutrition can make you fall short of this.  
 
Here's a little tip for you my friend. Don't bite off more than you can chew. You are trying to argue with someone who has a greater understanding of the world than you do. I strive to uncover truths and exercise my knowledge in useful applications such as debating on this website, unlike you who just reels off information from websites without even thinking about it for yourself.

It's funny how when you know you're wrong you still manage to argue back with me, claiming that I distort the meanings of words, despite the fact I took my definitions from a dictionary. Just ask me if you want me to explain what words mean to you, I can even go into the etymology or provide you with simpler synonyms to help you understand the meaning properly.

And thank you for showing me that even atheists are capable of that feeling of superiority over everybody else and patronising attitude towards others.

This is going nowhere, so I suggest that you spare yourself your last ounce of dignity while you still can instead of resorting to pointless arguments and petty insults. You started off arguing your point, but now you're just trying to put me down, using the philosophy that it will offend me greatly if you keep calling me little. Why don't you go and argue with the kids and stop wasting the time of the big people?

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"You are trying to argue with someone who has a greater understanding of the world than you do. I strive to uncover truths and exercise my knowledge in useful applications..."

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Do you have a superhero costume as well?  Thanks for the biggest laugh I have had yet on this website.

Actually, I was arguing with a wannabe who shameless distorts the simple meaning of words like "make", "allude" and "intelligence"; a guy who ridicules an assertion as preposterous in one post then in the next says he believed it all along; a guy who inserts gratuitous spite like "You make me sick" into his posts then attempts to claim the "moral high ground"; an adolescent pretending he's an adult who borrows all his ideas from the last book he read; a big fish in a little pond who, bolstered by the admiration of his little coterie of friends, swam out into the wider world thinking he was something special then got chewed  up (pun intended) by a shark.

Oh and as to your complaint that I've wandered far from the original debate topic. Anyone who looks up can see that your original post in this thread did not address the debate topic in any way. It came from nothing more than your piqued adolescent pride.

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I'm afraid I agree. Religion offers only answers that are comforting to the individual. Generally, it is intelligent people who are big and strong enough to question their beliefs, and criticise the flaws of religion. People who do not understand the true nature of reality are easily seduced by the idea of a supreme, loving deity.

ibanex_87

22 May 2008 08:17

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Omg chaew you are such ajerk i am a christion and an honor student. Plus if you knew any religious people you would find out that we are smarter than you'll ever be.last you are pethetic and racice.

TO: JERK FROM: Religous geinous

josie

03 Nov 2008 02:02

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Om my goodness. I'm a theist, but this comment alone could make someone not to be like you.

Homestar

03 Nov 2008 02:05

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That's pathetic

naz

19 Oct 2008 17:28

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People that believe in God are more intelligent in my opinion. For example, Albert Einstein believed in God.

created

21 Sep 2008 20:35

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I personally am not religious my self,but i pride myself in being religiously open minded, but i think that there are some people who are genuises who are religious, however religion could be a difficulty(for lack of a better word) in some areas(such as science).

freakyboy

16 Sep 2008 18:06

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No.

Personal faith in no way impairs your mental capacity any more than being a specific race or gender.

Nice try, but no cigar ;-)

Scorpion

26 Jul 2008 20:25

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That doesn't make you any less intelligent....that's like saying being a homosexual...make your less intelligent.....or being....African....now makes you less intelligent.............IT DOESN'T........

Preppyboi4

16 Jul 2008 03:48

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No, being religious makes you unwilling to think. Religious structures require one or both of two flawed "arguments":

1) Questioning the religion might make one doubt and is actively discouraged.

2) Questioning the religion is "evil" and "insults god".

22 May 2008 19:49

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Again, I find your arguments because of the same prejudiced opinions.....Jesus himself often told to people to think and asked "who told you that?' other verses that tell you NOT to just blindly accept things "study to show yourself approved, a workman, worthy to not be ashamed" It says it's even shameful not to use your own brain. Your kind of comments comes from not studying, not knowing and not asking intelligent question, rather than just commenting on what you really know little about.

stever

22 May 2008 20:00

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Sorry, religion has no effect on intelligence, but see charlee's response, it says everything I need to say.

Mark

22 May 2008 16:46

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Although it is true that many unintelligent people are drawn towards, religion, it is not because of their religion that they do not know how to use their brains. Religion actually makes an individual more intelligent, because people learn things in religion that they would not necessarily know otherwise. Regardless of which religion you practice, you will learn something new in the religion. Intelligence comes from a person's efforts. Have you ever heard of Tabula Rasa? We are all born as a blank slate and we are all given the same opportunities to learn. However, it is society that corrupts the human mind. Society is able to persuade an individual to make bad choices and give up on learning. Only those who have mental problems at birth are those who do not have the same opportunity. Therefore, religion can only make one smarter, but it cannot determine one's overall intelligence.

Professor

22 May 2008 14:43

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Though I'm not religious, I know several extremely clever people and a few of them are religious.

Snipex

22 May 2008 14:31

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We bring our intelligence with us no matter where we go, and it is our experience that typically dictates how we end up in these matters. I went to a Jesuit college and met some people with the highest of intellects and they were Jesuit priests. I also know a few atheists that are of very average intelligence. If you are trying to say that those who are religious are more close minded, i would disagree with that as well, unless you speak of extremists.

innomen

22 May 2008 14:12

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Bright minds for Christ: Paul of Tarsus, John the Evangelist, Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria, John Damascene, Origen, Augustine, John Chrysostom, Boethius, Erigena, Anselm, Abelard, Aquinas, Bonaventura, Scotus, Ockham, Nicholas of Cusa, Cajetan, Luther, Calvin, Kepler, Ignatius Loyiola, Dante,da Vinci, Michelangelo, Descartes, Pacal, Leibniz, Berkeley, Copernicus, Newton, Kierkegaard, Newman, Pasteur, Jaspers, Marcel, Galileo, Tolstoy, Chesteron, Dostoyevsky, T.S. Eliot and C.S.Lewis.

I would pit this intellectual team against: Minds not for Christ: Machiavelli, Hobbes, Renan, Freud, Darwin, Marx, La Mettrie, Skinner, Nietzsche, Sartre, Russell, Ayer, Paine, Dawkins, Harris, Hitchens and the ACLU any day.

charlee

22 May 2008 14:05

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Machiavelli was an atheist? I knew he was highly critical of the church, but i didn't know he was an atheist.

innomen

22 May 2008 14:15

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