[pleoxy]

A totally generic and unthinking generalization.

There is a place for religion. Something that pushes you to be better than you are. Along with the happiness and fulfillment that comes from that effort. Selflessness, love, compassion, truth.

Plenty of bad religions telling you that you are perfect the way that you are. Just give me money, fame, or influence and I will flatter you and pump your ego.

Another form of this is flattery in exchange for hating something. Many doomsday cults fit this category. All your life problems are because of 'insert target X'. But I, I have the answers you need.

Religion is more attuned with purpose, where your heart is, than the belief in God. Though the two are often paired.

And yes, we crave purpose.

[polar8]

There are plenty of things that deliver the above without the dogmatic slaughter of hundreds of millions of humans throughout history and at this very moment.

[WJW]

There's also plenty of religious people who have never murdered anyone in their lives, and there have been plenty of dogmatic massacres for reasons entirely unrelated to religion. The two issues seem to be quite uncorrelated tbh.

[paulryanrogers]

Religion requires belief without evidence. (Or flimsy evidence like ancient testimony.) It's uniquely positioned as a tool to manipulate people to do things they wouldn't otherwise do.

[pleoxy]

You completely missed the nuance I tried to convey.

Making a giant bucket of lots of things and declaring it bad because there is something bad in there shows your ignorance.

Ignoring reasoning shows an unwillingness to learn about stuff.