Religion is like alcoholism: it muddles one's thinking, makes one see things that aren't there, compels one to rant about nonsense, and afflicts millions of people despite its obvious drawbacks.

I believe the true purpose of religion is to give hope to the hopeless; it is the one thing people fall back on when all else has failed them. ...It's all a crock of shit, of course. Religions are set up to exploit the most vulnerable and desperate members of a society. If identifying with a particular religious organization puts the believer's mind at ease (or if nothing else, can be used as a guide to make the believer a 'better person', then the trade off is worth it. [I don't have a problem with others deluding themselves, as long as they leave me out of it.] I don't believe in 'Creator beings' who require praise when I do something right, but 'works in Mysterious Ways' when I make mistakes. I take responsibility for all of my actions, no matter what the outcome. I'm a big boy, and I already know how to wipe my own ass, thank you very much...

Depends what you mean by religion. See Ninian Smart’s Seven Dimensions

Absolutely not

I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. I'm inclined to say no, that religion and government aren't the same, even if they sometimes dovetail in various ways. Nationalism, though, I consider to be a type of religion, but that wasn't your question.

As for the purpose of religion, do you mean in regard to how it's leveraged by government for political purposes? For instance, as the opiate of the masses? Or do you mean the purpose it serves in the lives of the faithful? Either way, that's a very broad topic that we'd scratch only the surface of here.

yes. the true believers in either are brainwashed.

no

I hope not or we are all screwed and not in the fun way.

Sometimes reliving and government are the same thing. See theocracies, but mostly no. As far as religious purpose, I don’t really know. It’s probably best to ask religious people that question.

You've gotten some good answers here. See my post from UA's Church & State. As for my opinion on why there is religion, I think people find solace in believing there is more after death. Religion is a comfort food.

You wanted to be?

It's generally worse.

Religion does not have to have a purpose, much of religion is simply a pebble on the beach, it is there but has no intent. When it does have purpose, then the purpose can be as varied as the people who take it up, but certainly one of the best of its many purposes in the historical past, has been to provide an alternate voice to that of government, and sometimes an alternate way of filling needs and a refuge for those persecuted by governments. This, I would say, was and still is, its best purpose and perhaps the only one largely untainted by evil.

Both are a forms of control. So yes.

Depends on the government

The purpose is to fill a void until such void it's gone and then religion it's not needed ever again. The void rapture it's called awakening

Essentially the purpose of religion is to control the masses this being said it is the same as the Governments purposes