The group of research Ciencia Razón y Fe (CRYF) of the University of Navarra held on December 15 the seminar "The Cognitive Science of Religion: History, Key Debates, and Future Prospects", at position by Nathaniel F. Barrett. The cognitive science of religion emerged in the 1990s, whose central goal is to explain religious thought and behavior using concepts and theories from cognitive science.

Nathaniel F. Barrett wanted to show some remarkable aspects of this science: its relationship to "the fathers" of cognitive science; the way it has been defined; and its interpretive stance of the humanistic disciplines that address programs of study about religion (e.g., sociology and the history of religion); the role of the research of the cognitive science of religion in the polemics of "new atheists" such as Daniel Dennett and Richard Dawkins; the response of theologians and philosophers of religion to the proposals of this science; and how it influences the Public discourse about religion.

He also considered that an adequate cognitive science of religion could contribute in a positive way to the understanding of the religious phenomenon and to the public dialogue on religious issues.

Nathaniel F. Barrett is researcher of the group Mind-brain of Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) at the University of Navarra. He has done his programs of study at Yale, Harvard and Boston University. His research has focused on the historical and philosophical study of the relationship between science and religion, paying particular attention to the concept of nature involved in the scientific and religious understanding of the human person.