[Serious] What does religion have to offer?

[EgoDeath]

Most of the things religion offers are achieved by other things even among the religious.

Mhm for sure. It's always interesting to me when people talk about the contributions the religious have made to society, as if they couldn't have made those contributions otherwise.

[Acrobat]

Time and time again we have had conversations with religious whack-jobs who come on this forum with some tired, washed up platitudes and tell us, "Checkmate, Atheists! Bet you can't explain this one!" I would say about 99% of the time we easily dismantle their silly arguments; whether or not they choose to admit, or whether they realize, their logic is faulty is another story entirely. But, for the most part, I can safely say that no theist here on this forum has ever thrown a curve ball at me that I either didn't see coming or haven't seen before. The most of you could probably say the same for themselves.

That being said, religion does seem to offer something to billions of people around the world. I have argued, and still believe, that whatever religion offers to people, other systems in life could offer the same, if not better. Through logical thinking and rational discourse, I've come to appreciate my place in this universe as entirely insignificant. While I may have found meaning in my life and people that I care about, our existence here basically means nothing. And that is, undoubtedly, one of the most beautiful things about our time here. It's as if we're a little flower that's sprouted up in an empty garden.

I am hoping here to start a list of what it is that religion provides for people. We can, as atheists, at least speculate about what it is that people draw from being believers, people of faith.

I think that that faith and belief provides:

Comfort in death
A sense of belonging
A sense of purpose
A community
A conduit for shared experiences, of which the psychological benefits are great
A sense of understanding the history of the world, even if that history is completely or mostly inaccurate
A feeling of having someone there when one is completely lonely or hopeless
People also seem to get some benefit from prayer

If anyone thinks this list needs added to or subtracted from, please reply.

Religion offers a wide variety of people, writers thinkers, communities, that relate to far greater lot of us, than any sort of atheism.

There’s no atheist Dostoevsky.

I think of my poor Christian mother for instance, when we are the most intimate, our language is almost always religious, about forgiveness, love, what’s sacred, repentance, sin, failure, wholeness, suffering, joy, hope, grace all in the light of eternity.

Atheist seem to be obsessed with talk of the objective world, about questions of science, and it all appears superficial, while this inner life remains untouched. It’s the slave looking upon the cross, and seeing the lynching tree, secretly meeting at night in fields, filled with elation by a hymn of hope, and freedom. It’s that song that animates life.

“ even if all possible scientific questions be answered, the problems of life have still not been touched at all.”
-
Ludwig Wittgenstein

[Belacqua]

 as if they couldn't have made those contributions otherwise.

Could have, maybe, we think, in a counterfactual time line, in a history that we fantasize.

In the history we have, though, religion has made contributions.

[The Grand Nudger]

-and now we’re on to the there’s no atheist -insert author I like- portion of the exercise.

There probably is, read more books. It’s expected that the authors of books religious beliefs will reflect their position in time.