The threat of an all-powerful God (or gods) watching for anyone who steps out of line likely helped to keep order in ancient societies. In a recent analysis of religious belief systems of nearly 600 traditional societies from around the world, Joseph Bulbulia at the Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand and his colleagues found that those places with harsher weather or that are more prone to natural disasters were more likely to develop moralising gods. They (txiv neeb) regard Siv Yis as their archetype and identify as him when they are imbued by the gods. Homer’s words are universal and can be used in toasts given by parents, friends, or even the bride and groom themselves. Can any of them be explained scientifically? Religious experiences for non-believers can also manifest in other, more bizarre ways. On the other hand, science – the system of choice that many atheists and non-believers look to for understanding the natural world – is not an easy cognitive pill to swallow.

Mike Rampino, a climate modeller from New York University, has run a computer simulation to look at the climatic effects of the Santorini blast. Could the effects of this eruption have reached as far as Egypt? Climatologist Mike Rampino thinks that the ash could have been seen from as far away as Egypt. When Santorini erupted, the wind was blowing in a south-easterly direction, towards Egypt. Santorini is 500 miles away, but the column of smoke would have towered some 40 miles above sea level. Samples of Santorini ash have been collected from the sea bed, the heaviest concentrations being in the direction of the Nile Delta. In Yemen, Houthi rebels have expanded their territorial control, which Saudi Arabia perceives as a potential beachhead for Iran on the Arabian peninsula, along vital shipping routes in the Red Sea and in territory abutting Saudi Arabia’s own marginalized Shia minority. This incredibly powerful wave could be linked to the parting of a ‘reed sea’ in the delta that could explain how the story of the ‘Red Sea’ parting into two walls of water was written centuries later. Ash columns were ejected into the atmosphere, circling the globe within two weeks and causing complete darkness over a radius of 100 miles.

More formal religious systems, meanwhile, would likely only be a natural disaster or two away. For all of these reasons, many scholars believe that religion arose as “a byproduct of our cognitive disposition”, says Robert McCauley, director of the Center for Mind, Brain and Culture at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, and author of Why Religion Is Natural and Science Is Not. It makes us prone to looking for patterns to better understand our world, and to seek meaning for seemingly random events like natural disasters or the death of loved ones. A better question might be “Has the belief in God changed in recent times?” In this case the answer would be yes. But I guess it can be proven with belief and not fact that Jesus didn’t get resurrected and God isn’t real. Critics have argued that black magic is inherently selfish and destructive, while proponents contend that it can be a tool for personal transformation and the attainment of power. These personal beliefs evolved over time through varying historical, cultural and political climates as the religion spread worldwide.

All of them welcomed me and respected my right to my own beliefs. Pfisteria, or something like it, caused the fish to die, thus turning the river red; the pollution would have driven the frogs onto the land, on land the frogs would die, causing an explosion of flies and lice. The residents woke up to find the waters of their river – the Neuse – had turned red. John Marr, epidemiologist, thinks that fall-out of volcanic ash could have produced a toxic bloom of algae in the River Nile; thus setting off a chain of events similar to those produced by pfisteria. The river had been poisoned. Fish sauce has a distinctive aroma and taste that is an essential part of Thai food. Epidemiologist Dr John Marr believes most of the ten plagues could have been caused by polluted water in the Nile poisoning fish and setting off a tragic chain of events. Oceanographer Dr Daniel Stanley, went to the Delta to drill for samples of mud and silt to see if the ash could have reached Egypt. System 1, for example, makes us instinctually primed to see life forces – a phenomenon called hypersensitive agency detection – everywhere we go, regardless of whether they’re there or not.