Do you see any benefits to religious faith?

[bennyboy]

Or should we contribute to the perpetuation of delusions that feel useful to certain individuals?  How does one weigh the harm with a subject as broad as religion, or simply fantasy?

Unfortunately, I think the answer really is, "It's for the kiiiiiiids."

Parents want their children to flourish, but also want the ability to control them. Therein lies the omnipresent struggle between Dionysian and Apollonian influences. If the kids are out of control, they may be told lies, in conjunction with punishments, to bring them under control. If they are too oppressed, and therefore lack the creativity or inspiration to flourish and thereby assist their family in flourishing, they will be yanked out of church and encouraged to find their own meaning in their lives.

But then you end up with artist kids with heroin habits, and it repeats: "Oh shit, no matter what, we gotta make sure the next generation will respect authority, and will obediently get down to the job of building a house and making babies."

We can see this cycle between conservatism (always supported with some kind of mythology or honor code) and liberalism over various periods: Greece vs. Rome, Renaissance and Classical periods vs. Baroque and Romantic periods, and since the start of the 20th century, it's extremely easy to plot the flip-flopping of values every 20 years or so. Note that in none of this dance of life does Truth really serve the task of the day-- a good metaphor will drive minds much more than Truth will, pretty much all the time.

/pointlessly long and self-indulgent rant