Why do people still believe in religion in the 21st century?

 

Famous German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, declared as early as in 20th century that “the god is dead”. Still, there is something which has kept people’s belief in religion intact after all the bloodshed and violence that happens in the name of god.

 

It was Charles Darwin’s theory of Evolution and natural selection that challenged the existence of god as the originator of all the universe for the first time. And it was just the start of scientific discoveries and developments that started to take toll on the earth and has never looked backed since then, no matter what.

 

 

Not only scientific, but there have been many historical instances also where humanity lost their faith and belief in god. World wars for example, and the atrocities of holocaust was another reason for people to lose their belief.

 

Beside everything, people are still fighting each other for god, as if it is the only solace that they have. There is a whole psychological and philosophical reasoning for it. And a lot of mental conditioning that happen with every individual, on the social level. And these individuals then make the god-fearing masses.

 

 

As another 20th century philosopher, Karl Marx remarked, “Religion is the ***** of masses.”

 

Religion, even before nationality is something which gives these masses a sense of belonging to a community. It forms a support system, a backbone in the life of people, which is too hard to give up later in life, even if one wants to when exposed to other philosophical ideas.

 

That people are conditioned mentally to follow something/someone that they don’t even know exist or have existed in past is one reason. The other reason is more concrete.

 

There are many intellectuals who are well-versed in literature, philosophy, and science, and still believe in religion. What they have with them is an explanation for believing in a particular religion. They are not mentally conditioned but do it with their own free mind and will.

 

 

They know that science is taking us to Mars and explaining each and every biological phenomenon, but still they take religion as a way of their life and existence.

 

They are able to do that because it is not the pundits, priests, or mullahs they follow, but their own interpretation of the sacred text of their religion. They are intelligent enough to make their own sense of the Geeta, Bible, or Koran, and it makes it easier for them to follow a religion.