What Happens When God Is A Node?

There was one topic covered in the Christakis and Fowler reading this week that we did not discuss in class but which I found highly fascinating. It was the idea that religion and the inclination to form networks may be related. Christakis and Fowler’s claim was that in a religious network, God is a node to whom all in the network are connected. This node can never be removed so there is always a short path between each and every member of that religious network. Their conclusion was that a key function of religion is to stabilize social connections.

I recently had a conversation with a friend in which we discussed much the same topic. We were talking about the purpose of Bible study groups in a particular nondenominational Protestant church. I had been under the impression that such groups were formed for the church’s members to better learn the religious text and to reinforce its moral teachings. My friend replied that yes, those were important aspects of the gathering, but that they were goals that could be achieved through individual study. She pointed out that in her religious upbringing she had been taught that the purpose of Bible study groups was to network with and create ties with individuals with the same believe system.

Christakis and Fowler, as well as my friend, realized that in many instances, religion is a social connector and stabilizer. To summarize Christakis and Fowler, religion binds people not just by a common idea, but also by a social relationship to other believers.