If this is how you've presented the question, Its a bit hard to answer it when one hasn't read these books. It'd be best if you'd put both books into a summary for us to go based off of, at most.
it influenced beliefs and caused confusion.
It’s a natural cause can not be control.
Answer:
The first one is Past Simple and next is Past Perfect. Personality, I think, that the first is better
D, because after you said though, yu have to complete your comparison