10 Voluntary Suffering

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS church), it is considered a commandment from God to give 10% of any and all income to the church as tithing (Transcript Here).  Being unable to spend 10% of one’s income on their and their offspring’s survival and reproduction can be considered voluntary suffering, or sacrifice to be more specific.  Tithing satisfies the definition of voluntary suffering, an individual’s acceptance of encouraged suffering for purposes that are supernatural and thus unidentifiable (Steadman and Palmer 2007) and its subset, sacrifice, the voluntary forfeiting of an evolutionarily beneficial resource.

Tithing is heavily encouraged by the LDS church’s leadership and is said to result in blessings;  blessings like being “an eternal family” where they will continue being a family even in the afterlife or receiving more church “callings.”  Callings are church responsibilities like being ordained Bishop or First Counselor.  Now, continuing to be a family in the afterlife is certainly an unidentifiable purpose for voluntarily suffering, but being given a responsibility in the church is an identifiable purpose.  The reason this example is still voluntary suffering, though, is that the connection between the voluntary suffering (cause) and its purpose (effect) is supernatural as church leaders are “guided by the Spirit” when choosing whom to call or whom to assign responsibilities.

How, though, can a behavior that reduces one’s evolutionary fitness while increasing another individual’s fitness possibly be selected for?  Continue reading in the section to find out!