Will Religion Fade As Our Civilization Adopts Science?

From the time I was a small boy until just the past few years, I believed exactly what Bertrand Russell said here.

Two centuries before Russell, Voltaire had pointed out, referring to religion as the basis for most of our wars, “Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.”

For a long while, it seemed that humankind was on the right track here with respect to belief in absurdities.  But recently it’s become clear that, as a species, our appetite for inane ideas has taken a significant upturn. What we’re seeing all around us in U.S. politics is all the evidence that anyone could possibly want.

Regardless of short-term trends, there is no long-term evidence that supports Russell’s assertion.  In ancient Greece, 2500 years ago, most people believed, for instance, that Helios drove a chariot daily from east to west across the sky and sailed around the northerly stream of Ocean each night in a huge cup.

Those who hold ridiculous, anti-scientific explanations for everyday phenomena like COVID, its cures, climate change, the Deep State, the proliferation of assault rifles increasing public safety, and the benevolent character of Donald Trump are just as numerous per capita today as they were thousands of years ago.