Fear of Death Inspires Belief in God
When faced with the thought of death, people are more likely to believe in intelligent design, the idea that life on Earth can be explained by an “intelligent being” guiding the process.
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Thoughts of death make people not want to die. “Thinking about death is known to have many psychological impacts. These impacts protect us from the fear of leaving this world. ‘We try to forget most of the time that we are mortal,’ said researcher Jessica Tracy of the University of British Columbia. ‘It’s impossible to forget, it’s real, it’s out there, it becomes harder and harder to deny that.’ Often fear of death is tempered by a religious belief in the afterlife or the soul… belief that life is guided by a creator is enough to help dull this fear of mortality, Tracy said. “
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