Religion is based ... mainly upon fear ... fear of the mysterious, fea…

Bertrand Russell
649 citations
Religion is based ... mainly upon fear ... fear of the mysterious, fear of defeat, fear of death. Fear is the parent of cruelty, and therefore it is no wonder if cruelty and religion have gone hand in hand. My own view on religion is that of Lucretius. I regard it as a disease born of fear and as a source of untold misery to the human race.
Death Humanity
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I am sometimes shocked by the blasphemies of those who think themselves pious. ✨ Bertrand Russell (2009). Unpopular Essays, p.73, Routledge
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