The five "R"s that probably inspired the invention of god and religion:

[smax]

"At some point (who really knows when), man decided to invent god. Here are the top 5 reasons I can come up with that probably motivated him to do so.

#1. Regulation - Controlling the masses
#2. Reward - Immortality
#3. Reunion - Spending eternity with deceased friends, family, and loved ones
#4. Reason - Purpose
#5. Retribution - Enemies and the immoral must suffer

I listed them in the order that I think most compelled man to invent god and religion, but I could easily see them in a different order."

My instinct says that these all came later (no proof whatsoever) but it would seem to me, as others have largely said there was a desire to explain things around, a fear of the unknown and an urge for early men to place themselves in the cosmos. The last of those is probably similar to purpose but may have been only at the level of establishing their relationship with everything around them.

smax,

The Jewish faith is not a bad match for what you are looking for. It is not a proselytizing religion. Outside of Israel I don't think its big on special demands from government although I couldn't swear to that. There may be many exceptions.

To be clear, I'm not looking for religion. I've come to realize that the need for religion is largely based around human insecurity, something I've managed to grow out of.

That said, I have a difficult time believing that the Jewish religion is as non-threatening as you suggest.

We are, afterall, talking about a religion that has advocated genocide, slavery, racism, sexism, and all sorts of hate crimes.