Is/Was the creation of Religion Tribal and only needed at the point of primative nature of our past???

Question

What are the current benefits of religion and the ideologies that come from the tribal thinking that stem from it. I am just wondering if we still need religion or do you think it will naturely decline as humankind learns more and moves into the future? Also why don't we need religion? Does Religion hinder our thinking processess??

Answer 1

Religion HAS declined in most economically developed countries over the past 100 years, the only major exception is the United States. People in these countries do not accept religious authority and religion has therefore lost its powers of social control and moral leadership. People have turned from religion to science as the primary source of explanation of nature and the way the world works.

However, science and material economic welfare cannot answer questions such as "why are we here?", "what is the purpose of life?", "why is there suffering?", and "how can I be truly happy for ever?" People need answers to these questions, so spirituality will continue to flourish into the coming centuries and millennia even while heirarchical religion continues to decline.