Following are ten reasons for having and maintaining faith in religion. However, you are not totally indoctrinated by (or hypnotized by) some religion, you may be able to think of some other reasons why people are religious. On the other hand, if you are thoroughly indoctrinated by (or hypnotized by) a religion, then you will think that I mistakenly omitted your “real” reason—the one that you were taught to believe.
1. Childhood Rearing: It is very difficult to be taught something from birth and then deny that it is true even in adulthood—especially when most people in ones environment are persistently reinforcing such beliefs. Religions have built-in ways to perpetuate its beliefs; note this verse from the Ephesians 6:4 of the Bible: “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” In fact, some religions conspire to keep people in a childlike submissive state of mind; for example, In the Deuteronomy 14:1, adherents are told: “You are the children of the LORD….” Note that this scripture wasn’t merely written for children—it was written for adults too. Also, some religions are emotionalized with fear, and thus becoming more sustainable; for example, fear is taught in the Bible—witness this by reading the following quote from Psalm 34:11, “Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.” The following statement from Proverbs 22:6 reveals why childhood indoctrination into religion is the main reason why so many people are religious: “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”
2. Fear: The fear of death is an emotionally powerful motivation for people to not only become religious but also to not question their religion. A lot of people are not only afraid of dying but are also afraid of what might happen to them after they die. Thus, when taught that those who don’t believe what their religion teaches and don’t do exactly what they are told will infinitely burn in hell after they die, this fear not only motivates them to believe but also motivates them to get as many others as they can to also believe.
3. Desperation and Need: It is much easier to have faith in a religion when you have nothing else. If you are in a time of desperation and need with no hope, then you need something on which to hold. “If someone is completely satisfied with life then they have no need for a religion because they are content with how they are.”
4. Tradition: A lot of people just accept their religion because it is their tradition. It is ingrained in the mainstream of their culture and has been practiced all of their lives by most people around them. Like the saying goes: “If it was good enough for my father, mother, grandparents, and great-grandparents, then it’s good enough for me.” Or, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Thus, if you were born and raised in Europe or America, then your religion is most likely to be Christianity; however, if you were born and raised in India, your religion would most likely be Hinduism; still, if you were born and raised in China, your religion would most likely be Taoism, Buddhism, or Confucianism; etc. People in all religions tend to believe that their religion alone holds the absolute truth, yet if they were simply born into another culture or with parents that had a different belief their religion would most likely be different too.
5. Searching Reasons to Live: For most people who are not born into wealth, living is a hard struggle to survive and to succeed. Even those who have the inherited advantage of wealth, they too have to find reasons to live that are greater than simple pleasures. All religions provide motivation to live; and, some, however, provide motives for following their rules that include rewards after life.
6. Guilt and Shame: Growing up is a process of trial and error. Therefore, all people have made some bad choices in their lifetime; so, it is normal for people to feel guilt and shame. Some religions promise a new start (“to be born again”), which will include the forgiveness of all of one’s past wrong-doings (or sins).
7. A Better Social Life: Human beings tend to be social animals. What other people think matters to most people. Most of us also have needs to feel loved and to feel as though we belong to someone or some group or some valued social organization. Thus, to belong to a religious organization tends to extend people’s self-concepts and causes them to feel better about themselves; they also get a hefty dose of instant love whenever they congregate with other socially needy persons of the same faith. This not only feels great, but if people in the religious organization help each other, then that in-and-of itself can be greatly rewarding.
8. Contentment and Assurance: Even as complicated as life essentially is, if people faithfully believe that all they have to do to be saved is “X, Y, Z” the best that they can and if somehow they falter, all they have to do is repent and ask for forgiveness, such simplistic belief is very comforting and reassuring. It is also much less stressful than thinking for one’s self, trying to figure out the best way to not only survive but also to become quite successful in a worthwhile livelihood that is not only self-actualizing but also leads to self-fulfillment.
9. Reliance upon Others: A lot of religious people do not want to take responsibility for their actions, their choices, and the world that they create around themselves. They need someone to blame and someone to send their problems to, so they blame “Satan” and send their problems to “God” in prayer. If they believe that the “world” is essentially bad and that all people are born in sin, then (when they sin) they can blame the Devil, repent, ask God (and sometimes other members) for forgiveness, then forget about it; after that ritual, then they don’t have to be concerned about the consequences of their sins because God will take care of everything; they also feel that the extent to which they have to modify their behavior is to strengthen their religious conviction and adherence to its doctrines. Many people have said that they can't do something on their own so they leave it in God's hands. For example, some have said, "I can't quit smoking on my own, I can't quit drinking on my own, I can't live a happy life on my own, I can't find a good job on my own or live a satisfied fulfilling life on my own so I just put my faith in God knowing that he will do all these things for me." Of course, this kind of attitude may prevent stress and strain that may occur with self-reliance, but it tends to prevent self-growth, self-enhancement, self-actualization, and the greatest being of all—self-fulfillment.
10. Spiritual Fulfillment: Here, I define “spirit” simply as thought and/or emotion. There is a spiritual void in thoughts and/or emotions of some people that they themselves do not know how to fill without their religion. Basically, they want a life with more meaning and more purpose. I think that this is one of the biggest reasons why people turn to a religion hoping that they can satisfy that spiritual void. You go to church and you see all of these people excited for God and you think to yourself, "this must be it; this is what I have been searching for; just look how happy all these people are." So you join the church and you get excited and on fire for God and you’re so happy and nothing can ever take you down. But as time goes on you start to realize that the spiritual void is still there and you start feeling the same as you did before if not worse. That is perhaps the main reason that so many religious people are overweight—that is, they think that they are always suppose to be happy; and, since food makes them happy, they try to fill that void with food; this constant craving for happiness and overeating to reduce it tends to cause obesity.
Conclusion: Religions may have some very important benefits for some people; however, they may also cause some negative side-effects for those who fully submit to them.
