Here is some interesting reading for you all, courtesy of Edge.org.
First up is an essay called Moral Psychology and the Misunderstanding of Religion, by Jonathan Haidt, in which he takes the “new atheists” to task for failing to develop a subtle enough appreciation of the adaptive underpinnings of religion, and of morality. He draws on recent shifts in how the notion of group selection is understood, and introduces some non-traditional functional concepts about morality.
Next, read responses by Michael Shermer, David Sloan Wilson, and Sam Harris, here.
I haven’t had time to digest all of this myself yet. Have a look, and let’s talk about it a little later.