by Harry Cassio

Created on: November 09, 2008   Last Updated: December 07, 2008

Origins of religion (back to the beast)

We possess an inordinate number of characteristics that animals don't. The limited emotions experienced by animals stem from an inferior intellect and a lack of what we call spirituality. Animals don't experience humor the way humans do, they can't look forward to something they have yet to experience, they are not spiteful, they are not artistic, when danger passes they learn from the experience but aren't likely to develop an ulcer worrying about what might have been. Animals have no concept of self-image. Animals are able to adjust their behavior to suit human social requirements but whilst they know that a certain action may result in retribution, they feel no remorse for any wrong doings, morals have no place in the animal kingdom. Much of what we are is based what we feel, the way we surmise our origins is due to a combination of natural sciences and how we sense and perceive our environment. These traits are the domain of humans.

I do not believe that the enormous disparity between humans and animals is due to evolution alone. I believe we have had help. The universe has been in existence long enough to have evolved a species such as ours many times over. It is inconceivable to me that, considering its size, composition and longevity, the universe could be responsible for having evolved only one such species. I believe that our evolution was assisted.

Here we are with our origins extending back a mere one hundred thousand years surrounded by animals whose evolution extends back one million years and who have remained virtually unchanged for much of that period. The dinosaurs were in existence for two hundred million years and still managed to evolve no further than the accepted animal kingdom. Why have we been singled out in such an extraordinary way?

Imagine an extraterrestrial monitoring the development of the earth and its species until such time as he thought it capable of being used as an experimental laboratory. The reasons for such an act would be many and varied, the idea of impregnating some of the higher apes with his own DNA would have been too tempting to ignore. This assistance to a species development would have been responsible for our having risen so far above the rest of the earth's animals and would also account for the gaps in the anthropological fossil records.

The contact that early man may have had with these visitors may have been far greater than that which we experience today, but may nevertheless

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