Y'know amidst all this high falutin' talk about God and metaphysical stuff, I forgot what is probably the most important function of religion, which is to mark, honour, provide continuity to the milestones that every generation of humans shares with each other, across cultures and eras: birth, passage into adulthood, weddings and death. By means of community-based rituals, the universality of these human events has been woven into the traditions of many societies and has helped each generation find its identity in tribal history.
Of course, we have outgrown this in many ways and i think it's responsible for a lot of the backlash into fundamentalism that has arisen , particularly in the three Judeo-Christian traditions. the loss of community identity and affirming rituals, as well as, of course, the challenge to mythic/magical thinking that scientific thought has brought.
I suppose we'll either have to adopt new faiths, like the Baha'i Faith (and perhaps some of the Pagan groups that are emerging) that are compatible with the changes occurring in modern society, or religion will become less and less important to communities.
I wonder what will replace it.
