Only insane entities think that such beings as "gods" exist and humans as a species is totally insane. It doesn't matter which religion is being discussed. Humans will believe in even the most silly and stupid beliefs because we have the ability to imagine alternate realities.
Our ability to imagine is one of our greatest strenghts and it's also our greatest weakness. It makes us gullible and easily fooled because we want and need organization and structure in our lives. That's where religion and gods come in. When con men came up with the idea of gods they were able to control their groups of dummies who needed something that they could attach all of their insecurities and hopes that they had been imagining onto. If they imagined going hungry they created gods that would feed them with game and plants. When they saw their loved ones get sick and die they imagined gods that would make it all better. People still pray to their favorite imaginary gods for help in time of need. It's something that's hard-wired into our being.
If everyone was actually able to see into the past for the events described in their favorite ethnocentric religious fairy tales and see that the stories are frauds they would still cling to them, at least until they made up some new ones. The basic value in any religion is that it provides a system of order that allows the group to become civilized. Some people are capable of functioning perfectly fine without being actively religious but that's most likely because they were exposed to it at an early age. When people don't have that exposure they tend to become outlaws. Even the North Koreans are religious in that they worship their leader.
So even though most of the Bible characters are imaginary and there are no gods in this solar system, it doesn't matter to billions of people. Their imagination demands that such things exist.
Our ability to imagine is one of our greatest strenghts and it's also our greatest weakness. It makes us gullible and easily fooled because we want and need organization and structure in our lives. That's where religion and gods come in. When con men came up with the idea of gods they were able to control their groups of dummies who needed something that they could attach all of their insecurities and hopes that they had been imagining onto. If they imagined going hungry they created gods that would feed them with game and plants. When they saw their loved ones get sick and die they imagined gods that would make it all better. People still pray to their favorite imaginary gods for help in time of need. It's something that's hard-wired into our being.
If everyone was actually able to see into the past for the events described in their favorite ethnocentric religious fairy tales and see that the stories are frauds they would still cling to them, at least until they made up some new ones. The basic value in any religion is that it provides a system of order that allows the group to become civilized. Some people are capable of functioning perfectly fine without being actively religious but that's most likely because they were exposed to it at an early age. When people don't have that exposure they tend to become outlaws. Even the North Koreans are religious in that they worship their leader.
So even though most of the Bible characters are imaginary and there are no gods in this solar system, it doesn't matter to billions of people. Their imagination demands that such things exist.
