Religion is a disease of the mind?

Re: Religion Is A Disease of the Mind?

I recently read something online which linked religion to being a disease of the mind. I believe that religion and the concept of God hold many similarities to diseases of the mind but I would not say that they are the same. However, there’s very few other ways to describe how people, some of whom are presumably are intelligent, can be afflicted by something completely illogical. The concept of God has evolved to explain the unexplainable and provide people with a false sense of hope to support them in times of need.. It would seem that God is actually a beneficial construct of the human mind rather than a disease, which by definition is contradictory. I believe that people should strive for truth by and the notion of a God construct defies this search for truth; clouding many peoples view on the world. God interferes in people obtaining truth by creating a crutch whenever a situation beyond their control presents itself. Similarly, when an event that has us evade some horrible fate occurs, people are quick to credit God or another deity being as opposed to chance. The concept of God is for all intents and purposes harmless by itself. People are entitled to give credence to things as they see fit. Each to their own. However, the real disease aspect comes from organised religion; where a select few share their value system of what God is with others in a massively distributed system.  The most vulnerable are those of weak mind. The idea of coalescing and unifying rather than fending off the tide of peer pressure is far more appealing when confronted with such choices. Organised religion does have its role in society. From a spiritual sense, people need religion to engage in society when otherwise isolated. Even if the guy next to you has absolutely no relationship whether by interest or biology, sharing the same religion will provide a social bond. The most obvious danger though is when we return to the idea of how people manipulate the concept of God for their own ends, but this time in mass. This is the point of contention that is the most pernicious in religion. To sway the weak willed to a few’s bidding to me stinks of politics as usual. However, the masses being unable to desire for truth any longer now assault those who want to obtain truth. But it’s not a point of negotiation in this; they will impinge on others to suck them in and here the analogy of the disease is complete.

Below are a few videos that explain in depth the concept of religion being a disease of the mind.

Religion is a mental disorder:

Religion is a parasitic belief complex:

Religion is a mind disease: