What is Religion? What we might call religion appeared along with homo sapiens sapiens in the Paleolithic era, about fifty thousand years ago. These people left signs of belief in some supernatural reality beyond the physical experience. They buried their dead together with personal belongings such as jewelry, weapons, and clothing. They also painted pictures of animals they hunted on the walls of caves and ritually preserved the remains of animals they killed and ate. We deduce from these remains that early human hunters identified with the animals they killed, that they felt anxiety about killing and eating "one of their own," and that they tried to restore them to life. Early religion therefore seems marked by concern with hunting, food, death, and a wish to restore the dead to life. We do not have enough evidence to speak about the origins of religion, however. Nor can we...