{"id":6479,"date":"2009-11-21T12:42:03","date_gmt":"2009-11-21T17:42:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/?p=6479"},"modified":"2009-11-21T12:42:03","modified_gmt":"2009-11-21T17:42:03","slug":"jupiter-and-the-god-gene","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/","title":{"rendered":"Jupiter and the God Gene"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"the_god_gene_lg.jpg\"<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m a little behind on my newspaper reading so I just read the article by Nicholas Wade in the Times last weekend titled The Evolution of the God Gene<\/a>. \u00a0The concept of the \u201cgod gene\u201d suggests that the desire to believe in a higher power is wired into the genetic makeup of human beings.<\/div>\n
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Mr. Wade reports that in the Oaxaca Valley in Mexico archaeologists have uncovered evidence of a transition in religious experience from a simple dance floor for communal religious dances in 7000 b.c.e, through ancestor-cult shrines from 1500 b.c.e, to astronomically sophisticated temples beginning in 30 c.e. \u00a0Mr. Wade makes the point that religion is found in virtually every society at every stage of development and says that religion has been \u201cwired into our neural circuitry.\u201d<\/div>\n
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Religion is the belief system that we develop to give our life meaning, and as such it is represented astrologically by the planet Jupiter. \u00a0In the chart of an individual, Jupiter\u2019s placement shows the way that we construct our reality and what we believe in. \u00a0It shows where we find meaning in life, and the kind of experiences that give us what we would call a \u201creligious\u201d experience.<\/div>\n
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Religion occurs when multiple individuals share the same belief system and that belief system is formalized. \u00a0As Mr. Wade says, religion binds \u201cpeople together, committing them to put their community\u2019s needs ahead of their own self-interest.\u201d \u00a0Religion is about community \u00a0rather than individual experience, but the urge to devise a theology that gives our life meaning is a universal urge that is symbolized astrologically by Jupiter.<\/div>\n
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Early discussion of the \u201cgod gene\u201d<\/a> related more to a direct experience of the divine or other mystical experiences, which has more to do with Neptune. \u00a0Jupiter relates to the beliefs that we create around our experiences, and the way that we share those beliefs with others.<\/div>\n
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Mr. Wade\u2019s article divides people into atheists and believers, but there he misses the point. \u00a0Everyone believes in something, and if you ask an atheist what he believes in, he will likely say \u201cthe power of nature,\u201d or \u201chumanity,\u201d or \u201cthe power of discrimination.\u201d \u00a0They may not share a belief in what one group or another calls \u201cGod,\u201d but there is a belief system or a set of values that underpins everything they do.<\/div>\n
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Jupiter extends the personal belief system into a desire to share that belief system with others. \u00a0In an astrological chart with a stressful aspect from Jupiter to, say, Pluto, the individual will have a tendency to want to convince others of the correctness of their belief system. \u00a0Jupiter in a harmonious trine to innovative Uranus will have a more open mind, and Jupiter in a challenging square to Uranus will rebel against any organized religion.<\/div>\n
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Jupiter of course was King of the gods in the Roman pantheon, so it is only fitting that he embody what we are now calling \u201cthe god gene.\u201d \u00a0I\u2019m sure he would be very pleased.<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m a little behind on my newspaper reading so I just read the article by Nicholas Wade in the Times last weekend titled The Evolution of the God Gene. \u00a0The concept of the \u201cgod gene\u201d suggests that the desire to believe in a higher power is wired into the genetic makeup of human beings. Mr. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":537,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[1054,2099],"class_list":["post-6479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-religion","tag-juniper-astrology","tag-the-god-gene"],"yoast_head":"\nJupiter and the God Gene - Astrological Musings<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I'm a little behind on my newspaper reading so I just read the article by Nicholas Wade in the Times last weekend titled The Evolution of the God Gene.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Jupiter and the God Gene - Astrological Musings\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I'm a little behind on my newspaper reading so I just read the article by Nicholas Wade in the Times last weekend titled The Evolution of the God Gene.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Astrological Musings\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2009-11-21T17:42:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/astrologicalmusings\/images\/the_god_gene_lg.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lynn Hayes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lynn Hayes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/\",\"name\":\"Jupiter and the God Gene - Astrological Musings\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2009-11-21T17:42:03+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2009-11-21T17:42:03+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/#\/schema\/person\/79a21ba57527a93b02136b02ea5eb2e2\"},\"description\":\"I'm a little behind on my newspaper reading so I just read the article by Nicholas Wade in the Times last weekend titled The Evolution of the God Gene.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/blog\/jupiter-and-the-god-gene\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Jupiter and the God Gene\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/\",\"name\":\"Astrological Musings\",\"description\":\"Exploring the way the movement of the planets affect our inner and outer worlds.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/#\/schema\/person\/79a21ba57527a93b02136b02ea5eb2e2\",\"name\":\"Lynn Hayes\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/astrologicalmusings\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d66c632862817d88a0ce2af3a36c4050?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d66c632862817d88a0ce2af3a36c4050?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Lynn Hayes\"},\"description\":\"Lynn Hayes has been a consulting astrologer since the mid-1980s, working with clients to achieve greater self-understanding and empowerment. 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