Originally Posted by
lakeleilani
People will always have various beliefs or non-beliefs. Time will tell whether any of those beliefs or non-beliefs are correct, although if when we die we fade away into nothingness, we will never know anyway. On the other hand, if when we die our soul lives on in an afterlife (or until we reach Nirvana, as the Hindus believe) then we will know.
Leaving aside the way organised religion can be used as a form of control, it generally acts as a guideline for how we live our lives. In Britain, Christian elements still define our behaviour - such as not committing murder etc. It is usually extremists (of all faiths, Christian included) who give their religion a bad name and cause people to think that religion is the cause of wars and terrorist attacks. If people quietly practised their faith and got on with their lives, interacting with others in a peaceable fashion, then people wouldn't be so against religion. When people hear about acts of terrorism, murder, child abuse, and enforced idealisms all done under the protective umbrella of a religion, no wonder so many people in modern times want nothing to do with religion.
Science has explained so much, although not everything, and I think we should be careful of thinking that we know it all. If God exists, he still exists whether people believe in him or not. Time will tell... or not.