What If Religion Maximises Wellbeing? – Sam Harris
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@CosmicSkeptic
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Get all sides of every story and be better informed at https://ground.news/AlexOC. Subscribe for 40% off unlimited access or try it for less than $1 this month
@mainman2256
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Religion having some utility for some people doesn't give support for the metaphysical claims. True metaphysical claims aren't even necessary for the kind of utility religion is said to provide.
@jamesfranklin2360
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Belonging to a cohesive community is clearly beneficial, but the idea that religion adds something good to that remains to be demonstrated.
@workisbunker
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Black Balls? Bruh
@Waterbieep
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I don’t think Harris adequately addressed the question of whether, if someone attains a high level of well-being through belief in religion—which many people undoubtedly do—this would take precedence over the pursuit of true knowledge, even if it meant accepting claims such as the Earth being created before the Sun (which, for the record, I do not believe). However, I’m open to correction if anyone disagrees.
@tanvirjahan9557
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
0:55 *Jordan Peterson moment*😅
@chaisma
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Without the universe existence there is no causality argument exists
@KellieHolmes
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Bf
@cristianrata4866
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I find this whole interview laughable and sad at the same time. Despite his composure (I give him that), Sam is completely stumped by the questions and I find his answers laughable. I can't even say, "nice try!" 🙁 But great questions from Alex!
@susanstein6604
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Religious belief need not be decisive. Belief in political dogmas is just as devisive.
@PuyaR-pl7jt
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
It seems my dear Sam or should I say one of the «incarnations of intellectual conscience» has already an Invincible faith (despite “being agnostic to any metaphysical speculation”), «he still has faith in truth.» / A «rigid & unconditional faith in the absolute value of truth» // in other word he’s strong faith that «Truth shall set “individual & whole societies” free » & increases their well-being “in the long run” , far more than any false belief or “white lie” /// if I got it right, Bingo! The “black ball” is pulled out of the deep Well of his subconscious! 😀…,
@Bbb111-o9z
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
The correct response is: I believe that living based on truth is the best, therefore religious living is on principle wrong. I believe that atheistic people score poorly due to wrong living. The group of people who would score the highest on well-being would not be religious but rather atheists who have found the correct ethical system. The ethical system of the average religious person in a community of religious people is higher than the average atheist in an atheist community, that does not mean religion is better for well-being it just means that the average non-believer has gone astray.
@zma8080
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Isn’t the witchcraft comparison a false equivalence?
@micahaulermusic
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I used to think Sam Harris was really intelligent, but his arguments seem weak here
@pyrosfuel
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Religion maximizes unhealthy societal structure!
Religion has throughout history gotten a-lot of people killed! Covid is one example with super spreader events!
Religion does not hold a moral high ground! It holds fascist principals.
I cant wait for society to stop pretending like religion is a good thing when it it an unhealthy thing!
@nickbowd
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Sam Harris is really brilliant!
@robertbdavisii9801
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
"Real truths that are not divisive." Why do you assume that real, deep truths are going to not be divisive? Is the divisiveness in the truth or in the people?
@thegreatmoustachio
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I feel like Harris is what Peterson wants to sound like. Harris says profound things that actually have a basis in reality. And, even better, he seems to actually know what he’s talking about most of the time.
@CatETru
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Sam Harris is now a Buddhist. He is obviously an expert on the science of reality.
@BillyViBritannia
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I'll solve it for you. Communities with people who think like Sam and Alex have not happened because people who can think like them are not common enough to form large enough local communities.
Those that did happen, like the illuminati or whatever are rare, hard to get into and get frowned upon by the rest who can't join. I bet the people inside feel pretty good though… (Dont roast me about the illuminati, I just picked a random well known name)
@steveenglish9363
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Sam Harris tears peterson for his word salad debating style, and then here he goes full Peterson. 😂
@Skedazzle
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
It is very disappointing to me that nobody has questioned the data in regards to the benefits of religious belief or the meaning of it. Firstly, well-being is a self reported metic. This is subject to bias and reporting failures such as religious people may not be encouraged to report negative feelings as they are supposed to either hand those feelings over to a deity or suppress them so that they may be examples of the success of their faith or live the gospel as it were. This could account for the disparity in well-being.
The measures of health and longevity may be due to correlation not causation. Religious people may be disproportionately well off or have time to engage in religious worship when poorer people may have to work. This may account for much of the data. Or it could be that the networking provided by religious worship has economic benefits that allow for better health.
The other, possibly more important thing is that these studies only study the people who are currently in the religious community not the people who have left due to negative experiences, loss of faith or abuse or the people who have been affected by it but are not members. An example would be the Mormon church which has had a highly negative impact on many people but if you just went by the people in the church now that would not show up in the data.
I find it disheartening that these studies are not thought through critically or scientifically, they are just accepted as givens. I am not for belief or against it but I do harbor a deep skepticism about data and statistics and the way they are employed within science and without.
@user-vq6ym6qg4j
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Black balls lmao
@experiencer-kk6xb
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I have lived an incredible life of spiritual experience and I hope spiritual growth. I've meditated 3 to 7 hours a day for over 25 years and I've experienced incredible things and have a state of consciousness that I don't know a single atheist that has. On my journey with people who believe in some kind of God, I've met many similarly devoted people who have attained very high states of consciousness. Some have attained the fullness of enlightenment. Not a single one of these people is an atheist. It's very hard to imagine a person devoting themselves to love who is an atheist in the same way that the religious people I have known do.
Community is part of it, but it's the God that we all share that brings us together and it's the God that we all experience that is responsible for our awakenings. When asked about this phenomenon, Sam Harris seems to appeal to the future and a kind of faith that one day secular reality will/could produce the same results, but it hasn't and I don't think it ever will. Maybe if we get an atheist version of the Buddha with equal and profoundly deep consciousness that could happen, but I'm doubtful it ever will.
Most of what Sam Harris uses for secular spirituality was borrowed from religion and would have never been discovered without it. His entire approach to secular spirituality seems to be borrowed mostly from Buddhism….
Sam Harris also seems to recognize some quite subtle and profound states that spirituality can produce, but he does also seem to reject the many miracles that sometimes come with those states of consciousness. Although rare and not under personal control I've known many people who have experienced them and I've experienced at least two in person. Miracles are a kind of proof that what we're dealing with is not just a state of consciousness, but it's a state of consciousness that can affect the physical world and affect other people's consciousness. Most deep seekers have experienced this kind of thing enough to know for a fact that there's something more than just our minds at play. For most people it would be a profound loss to not have experienced that and to not know it and would weaken everybody's commitment I think.
I do not think secular spirituality can ever rise to the place that religion holds.
@SmartAss4123
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
The only issue I have with Religion, or religious people. Is when they attempt to impose their restrictions or ideals as objective truth or laws on others. Keep it to you and your househould. And I can respect it. The minute you cant it becomes a instant provocation and I have no sympathy
There are obvious reasons why religion popped up as a social construct and tool, to keep primitive societies and cultures together and live. But not a single religion has ever had an objective truth that their god or gods have ever been made true.
You're free to believe whatever random primitive belief that we just take written word for, I'm certainly not going to take it as fact. Even though I can agree to certain societal norms that were born out of "religious" practices and cultures. No stealing, no murder, freedeom to live and pursuit of happiness.. Etc etc. But there are obvious issues with some religions that are anti-ethical, and just barbaric ruthless power tools.
@KGchannel01
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Fascinating question to explore, thanks for digging in a bit!
My uninformed guess is that the experience of enhanced wellbeing by religion depends on the individual; that it is true for many, and untrue for at least a significant minority.
If so, to maximize wellbeing, it is important to give people options.
A book undermining faith can be therapeutic to people for whom faith is not experienced positively, helping them let go and move on to something that works better for them.
For people who experience faith as a wellbeing enhancing influence, it would still be important to educate them about the risks associated with various forms of belief, and teach critical thinking skills; so that they can better sift through the good and the bad of religion, and maximize the good.
Anyway, just thinking out loud, this question (whether religion enhances wellbeing) is admittedly not something I've researched, outside of belonging to various online support groups for people whose religious beliefs have crumbled, and who are trying to find ways to move on.
@jamesmoran6058
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
The failure to cope with the question or the possibility is astounding with this guy
@steved5960
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Alex has transcended New Atheism, Sam is still stuck there.
@hmb8801
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
🎤I was once atheist due to Harris and others like him but i finally reverted back to faith of god and Islam.✊
@threestars2164
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Would any of these religions still exist if I went back in time and randomized the human population? Would Christianity still exist if I relocated the Jewish people to the Amazon? Without the specific cultural, historical, and social factors that contributed to the formation of all religions, I imagine they would be drastically altered, leading to the potential emergence of entirely different religious traditions or the absence of organized religions seen currently on this planet altogether. A much more important thought experiment instead of wellbeing I think.
@pyotr94
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I was an atheist agnostics for 10 years. When you take that to its logical conclusion, its impossible to gain any sort of objective meaning and purpose. Sure, you can distract yourself with art, music and creative subjective pursuits but without the universe being grounded in some higher being, ultimately, you are nothing more than a pointless collection of atoms in motion.
@pcnoad
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
The problem is, we can't determine what story is the most beneficial to believe unless we know all the alternatives including the objective truth. So knowledge of the objective truth would still be important regardless.
Also, who gets to make that determination? For me the truth is important. I'm not saying I would necessarily be able to handle learning the truth. However, assuming I'm ever presented with the opportunity, I think that should be my decision.
@garfunkle37
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
The surrender to God is the antidote to the beast-like chimpish nature within that is fundamentally motivated by the need to eat, procreate and avoid death.
It is sheer ecstasy by comparison.
Good luck getting that as a strict materialist.
@hmoen
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Alex, please interview Francesca Stavrakopoulou.
@Batman713-h2z
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
If you ever wanted to learn how to have a good conversation. Watch every single one of Alex's videos.
It's pleasing and chill to listen to them they are like lofi beats
@partydean17
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Excellent clip
@yo-Rowe
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
The “what if” is a disingenuous premise when we know for certain the opposite is true. It’s not as if it’s a close call. Just because there are good theists, overall we know religion and theism is morally inferior as a whole. Per capita the number of criminals, rapists, murderers, not to mention divorces and abortions are overwhelmingly more likely to be theists. In the US over 20% of the people are atheist but account for less 2% of the convicts in the penal system, less than 6% of divorces and less than 1% of the abortions. Not that abortion is immoral but it’s not anyone’s idea of a good situation and atheists do a much better job of preventing it.
@dirtymeatball6315
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Dude, you’re a little late to the party. Sam Harris and his arguments have not aged well and he’s been proven to be wrong about religion and its effect on society.
I know there’s a small spattering of atheist out there who still insist that you’re not a religion , but you are. You don’t need to have a deity to be religion. I hope you know this right?
Anyway, good luck in your hatred for people of faith because in about 10 years you’ll be singing a different tune…
@wzywg
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
A sense of purpose and a sense of belonging. Clearly seen as better than reality.
@jesterlead
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Religions are not true. There are no moral absolutes. Evolution + selection has lead consciousness to evolve enough to thrive in this current environment. And, no free will. Everything you do or think has already been decided by the collection of events leading up to this very point of you reading this sentence. If you reply or not, already determined. A scary, yet true reality we live in and the fact the Universe owes you nothing, feels grim. It's those truisms and the fact that Humans are at a minimum rare, and likely unique in the Universe to go and do great things. What more inspiration could you possibly need? You are unique among 200 billion galaxies, you have precious few years before you'll again just be star dust; and there is no plan….
@gzoechi
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Sam Harris seems like a lost cause. He seems to be a really smart guy but he is stuck on his view of religion. Dr. Peterson already tried to explaint to hime where he gets it wrong. I'm not anywhere nears as good with words than Dr. Peterson but I'll try anyway.
It's not that we need to believe in a deity to be moral. It's rarher that the Bible contains what our ancestors figuered out to lead to a happy life (heaven). We need to trust them because one lifetime is just way too short to figure out our own values.
God is not a being, being is God. The Bible contains what what life (God) taught us to generally work (to be true).
There is no belief in some supernatural power necessary at all. Belief just means that it's usually not worth testing at your own peril whether what the Bible says is true. If you are a philosopher, theist, … and want to make this your lifes topic, go ahead and question, try, test, challenge, the rules. For all others just trust that they were tested before they were put into the Bible and concentrate on ensouring your family and community is flourishing or do whatever your calling is.
@nickgroves-dv9zj
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Ha! Watching Sam close his eyes 0:47 "Aaaahh.." A true "gotcha" moment – finally exposing Sam's subtle stealth semantic game.
Sam gets stuck in moral relative "good", "better" and "best", religion and witchcraft – and the idea of his own confirmation biases of both "its quite clear", and "sufficient evidence"
Sam's"place my bet" is just another way of speaking of his faith. He got so stuck in a spaghetti of his own making
..well done Alex!
@nohome12
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Alex, I appreciate your content, but please don't give a platform to a Zionist, a genocide monger.
@Rishabh-Dev
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Well of course it does. Just look at Hinduism and Buddhism.
@constantchange1145
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
I honestly don't know how I would have ever gotten the chance to experience the actual potential of meditation ( which is worlds apart from just feeling calmer or "quieting the mind" etc). Without doing a 10 day silent Vipassana course. The paradoxical nature of the goal, the reasons for sitting, the benefits and the how easily they all come is astoundingly beautiful with this alternate dimensional expansion in perspective. And it's attained through the simplest forms of self observation. All I needed was a tiny bit of guidance and support to sit down long enough and persist long enough to experience it. Without that wisdom from others who have experienced it I would never have even tried, and without their gentle encouragement and quiet/patient support I would have given up on day 2. It's funny when the answers we've been searching for were under our noses all along 😉 I wish you all the very best in your journeys to truly know thyself from experience. ❤
@Gibson1961SG
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
How can anyone still take Sam seriously after his TDS..?
@joseph7105
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
Sam Harris is lost in a fog of theories and abstractions. Most people's minds don't work that way, so religion is clear and easily understandable, much more coherent to common sense
@goldminetjo
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
What if alcoholism maximises wellbeing?
@clays4189
May 1, 2026 at 3:55 am
4:27 is so funny hahahhah
Comments are closed.