Comments on: Primal Altruism

By: danielle

danielle — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:36:29 +0000

Good thoughts, Joe. I agree that even altruism has a crouching tiger, eager to receive power or influence by being seen in a positive light. Perhaps this is why Jesus commands us so often to resist showy displays, even in pursuit of the good. (Don’t pray in public, if you’re fasting stick some rouge on your cheeks, etc.) And certainly we desire to be altruistic to some while excluding others we deem “unworthy.” The Didache says “flee evil of all kinds.” And that’s most dangerous when it’s hiding underneath the shadows of what seems so good.

By: Joe

Joe — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:13:45 +0000

That evolution selects for communal virtues such as altruism seems fairly logical. I think that generally the primal lusts that we are implored to deny are those that arise from situations where social networks break down. When it becomes every person for themselves, primal lusts make sense. Yet, the creative productivity of communities really suggest that social behavior is a higher degree of evolutionary fitness; altruism is an outgrowth of this.

I think the challenge that Jesus presents, is that he leaves no room for the implicit exclusionary character that hides in the shadow of altruism. All of Nietzsche’s criticism of Christianity and religion seemed to really bring to the forefront the way that altruism became a mask for a core of hidden lusts that seem to fester with all Christians. Jesus, though, shows that altruism is really a farce when it stops at boundaries that are convenient to our own social divisions. (i.e. race, social class, etc.)

One thing I take from this article is that lustfulness lies dangerously close to altruism, and that even when we think we are acting selflessly, our selfishness can easily be pulling the strings. If the same part of the brain is getting rewards either way, it is no small task to follow Jesus’ example and genuinely live for the benefit of others outside our own particular cliques.

By: Lori

Lori — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:19:44 +0000

I love it! Both the hope (we can always use more of it) and the neuroscience. I’m fascinated by the “backroom” workings of our brains, and–though this research may suggest that it’s not exactly “altruism”–think it’s fantastic that we’re so wired as to *want* to help each other out.