It is very reasonable to worry about the harm done by organized religion, and to prefer looser and more private arrangements. – Mary Douglas
If people want to compete for leadership of a religious group, they can compete in piety. A chilling thought. Or funny. – Mary Douglas
I have increasingly, over the years, felt that religion today does our civilization more harm than good. – Mary Douglas
Religion can make it worse. Are you supposing that if people were encouraged to believe in a transcendent reality, and to be encouraged by grand rituals and music and preaching, to love their neighbors, then they would put jealousy and frustration aside? – Mary Douglas