Abstract
Religiosity can be characterized by seven main traits: transcendence , ultimate relatedness, mysticism , myth, morality , rite, and community . Why is it ubiquitous today and throughout human history? It might be an evolutionary adaptation in terms of natural or sexual selection , and not a mere by-product of other traits or exclusively a cultural phenomenon, describable for instance, by memetics. If so, the following conditions must hold: universality, reproductive success , heredity, realization, and selective advantage. A brief review shows that current data are consistent with the adaptation hypothesis, but not sufficient to confirm it; and there are also conceptual and empirical problems. Finally, what can evolutionary psychology and neurotheology tell us about the three main sources of religious beliefs and whether those beliefs are true?
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