{"podcast":{"title":"The Uncertainty Podcast","slug":"the-uncertainty-podcast-7089022","podcast_index_feed_id":7089022,"rss_url":"https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/2770715.rss","website_url":"https://mileskdonahue.substack.com/podcast","image_url":"https://substackcdn.com/feed/podcast/2770715/103a86bed70977c39ac1021809009112.jpg","author":"Miles K. Donahue","episode_count":89,"summary":"I am a philosophy graduate and host of the Uncertainty podcast, featuring discussions with Tim Maudlin, William Lane Craig, Graham Oppy, Robin Collins, and others.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-04T18:17:12.802461+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-uncertainty-podcast-7089022"},"episode":{"title":"#70 Why Humans Believe in God - Daniel Wolne","slug":"70-why-humans-believe-in-god-daniel-wolne","published_at":"2026-02-06T19:30:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-uncertainty-podcast-7089022/70-why-humans-believe-in-god-daniel-wolne","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-uncertainty-podcast-7089022","url":"https://mileskdonahue.substack.com/p/70-why-humans-believe-in-god-daniel","audio_url":"https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/187085507/b9d88ad31caff792256cac604bfbc20a.mp3","summary":"Prof. Daniel Wolne explains historical theories of religion with special focus on Sigmund Freud's speculation that religious belief arises from a projection of a father figure onto the universe. We then dive into contemporary theories arising from the cognitive science of religion: theory of mind, hyperactive agency detection devices, and social function theories. Check out video of our discussion on YouTube . To support the channel, do please oh please consider donating, either via PayPal or Buy Me a Coffee . Follow me on X-formerly-Twitter . EPISODE CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Introduction 00:03:51 Explanation vs. theory of religion 00:07:26 Methodological naturalism 00:16:48 What is \"religion\"? 00:27:44 Sigmund Freud - Is religion just projection of a father figure? 00:39:42 What about non-theistic religions? 00:42:09 Is religion the response to fear of death? 00:45:22 Cognitive science of religion 00:50:52 Hyperactive Agency Detection Device (HADD) 01:06:06 What is religion's social function? 01:11:56 Does cognitive science undermine religious belief? Get full access to Miles K. Donahue at mileskdonahue.substack.com/subscribe","meta_description":"Prof. Daniel Wolne explains historical theories of religion with special focus on Sigmund Freud's speculation that religious belief arises from a projecti…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4966,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-uncertainty-podcast-7089022/episodes/70-why-humans-believe-in-god-daniel-wolne/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-uncertainty-podcast-7089022/70-why-humans-believe-in-god-daniel-wolne.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}