Do we need a religion for atheists?
The notion might seem at first to be bizarre and I am someone who has profound problems with much of religion as I have explained in this essay.
But a fair-minded review of religion would have to acknowledge that religion meets some fundamental human needs at an emotional level in ways which are very much lacking in the secular world which can often seem overly materialistic, individualistic and selfish.
Would it be possible to take the essence of some of the rituals and practices of religions and, without subscribing to any of the religious beliefs or metaphysical concepts, translate them into arrangements and institutions which better meet the emotional needs of people in the modern world?
This is the question examined by Alain de Botton in his recent book “”Religion For Atheists” which I have reviewed here.