Here is one reason I think people like to believe. It's like having an invisible super-power on your side. When you get in a tight situation, or someone close dies, you feel that there is a helper to keep you going. I think there are millions of alcoholics and drug addicts that actually reformed after deciding that they have accepted Christ as their savior. I am not sure why that works in so many cases, but it is one of the few things that does seem to work.
You know talented athletes will wear the same "lucky socks" for years without washing them because they believe the procedure does something for them. Of course, it's a superstition.
If I wear, say, a bracelet with a picture of my crippled son that reminds me to go to the gym and workout every day, should I really need that? Does it have meaning?

Humans are uncomfortable with the unknown. We desire answers. We desire relief. We desire control. We desire a reason. Religion is an easy answer to this all. lest we all try an become astro theoretical quantum physics researchers. Much easier to dumb down, accept the dictates of a leader, or tyranny of the majority i.e. Madison's fear, than to learn to roll with fate & fortune & adapt to the changing climate both literal & figuratively. Easier to force the square peg into the round hole than to accept both. Different is not wrong. Evolution is a long road but it depends upon differences.

Be hard wired to find patterns even if it leads to false positives is a preferable survival strategy.

That means we evolved to see patterns and in "nature" things tends to be simple and repetitive, so biases in general pays off.

Grass shaking? Better run can be a tiger, can also be just wind, but are you eager to bet a little energy saving against your life?

And so we start seeing the big patterns, food is easier to find when the days are longer, thus the big shiny thing on the sky must control the food supply, and it must choose to shine more some times (astronomy and planetary complex geometry is 1000 years ahead). The river overflows and then the lands produce food? The river is another one of this "people" that helps us to survive.
Some times (that happens when the river and the shiny thing are in the same part of its cycle) a huge heard of moving and easy to hunt beast made of very tasty meat passes close to our camp? That must be some cosmic benevolent king feeding us!!

Religion is a byproduct of how our intelligence developed.
And it survived because it is an efficient way to organize primitive societies, and by primitive I mean until 4 or 5 hundred years ago.

A set of rules that are Unquestionable and comes from a being that you can never dream in defeating and at the same time seems to make our tribe stronger against the neighbor tribe
Maybe because we wash ourselves before meal and don't get sick that often, maybe because we obey more our authorities so they can organize the work better, or maybe because we have multiple spouses (and the followers of the false god can only have one) so we can make more children that will generate more workforce and fighters to die defending our lands (generating a surplus of women in society).

Thus by the same evolutionary mechanisms that govern biology, religions evolved by natural selection, the more efficient (and with a bit of luck) ideas conquered the neighbor tribe and became bigger, mutated, had more variations etc.

With development of scientific method, philosophy, ethics etc we now (last 500 years or less) have tools that are more efficient and by the power of reason, statistics and education should not be questioned (we don't need the all powerful entity anymore to impose them).

"...as agnostics, do we have anything to add?"

Because we really feel a strange desire to heap a bunch more opinions on top of an already well-developed theoretical field, for some reason.

If it weren’t for religious indoctrination starting at an early age we wouldn’t have so many religious folks.

I have noticed that if the religious right gets ahold of children from birth to around 5-7 years old, they can instill their doctrine into them. Which makes them basically feel like they're guilty and damaged. If a child is kept away from religion for those years, they more often than not become lifelong atheists.

Some ancient people used religion to try to explain the world. Other's used it as a way to control people, by making them be the ones and only the ones that can communicate with the magic fairy that "made the world". This outline is a summary of what is found in the Christian bible, from I read.

Organized bullying

You should read 'God', subtitled, 'A Human History' by Reza Aslan author of 'Zealot". A facinating look at our history with God and how it came to be. He states, "Whether we are aware of it or not, and regardless of whether we are believers or not, what the vast majority of us think about when we think about God is a divine version of ourselves." Look at the concept of heaven, for most of us it's life without all the problems. Evangelicals think it's worshiping God 24/7. Sitting around day after day worshiping God will get pretty boring! LOL

I totally agree.

I wrote a post that deals with this question here: "Humankind has evolved to the point that they are conscious of their own mortality."

My 2 cents: we are herd animals, we like to be in a group or groups. From what I've seen -- the holy spirit is simply people zoning out in the middle of a repetitive sermon or speech. Eventually this takes on a life of its own. It becomes a gestalt thing. They can't explain but like being in it. Examples of herds include, but are not limited to: sports, politics, work. Not all of these develop a gestalt. A simple experiment: next time you're in an elevator stand in the front facing the doors. When the car begins to move, try to turn around, while still in the front.

"most humans love a religion" is a very provocative way of putting the question. If anything, humans/human brains love predictablity and agency. Religion promises people that if you make a sacrifice the harvest will be good and the sun will shine. You build a temple and you go to heaven and so on. It's very hard to falsify these statements, especially in the ancient world. I guess we are guilty of cognitive bias where having a faulty model of the universe is better than having none. Today science has progressed a lot to answer many of our existential questions, but the concepts are hard to digest and internalize. So, we resort to what seems plausible and easier to understand. We are only human afterall

It is my opinion that humans look for patterns in everything and thus see patterns of occurrence that suggest to them something beyond their senses is acting to make it happen. They then give that unknown agency a name, or names, and seek to convince it to do their bidding and control what is essentially uncontrollable. Others use these belief patterns to establish themselves as intermediaries between humans and these unseen agents, assuring themselves of power over others and willing obedience. This power corrupts and those in power seek more control (see forced conversions of various 'pagan' races) and other atrocities, all justified by their belief in their superiority because they have the favor of their make believe higher power. It's primitive reaction to fear, taken and used for greed.

I think that it is wishful thinking. People want to believe that there is something after death and that someone is watching over them despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

Largely a matter of seeking answers when all causes are opaque. We now have enough details to build upon.

It is genetic. We are tribal. As babes we seek to please those who house and feed us. We learn to do that which does not "offend" the giants. And then we grow to be giants, and continue to maintain the tribe.

It is easy and abnegates the believer from all responsibility for their life and actions.
Literally "god's" gift to lazy idiots.

It gives people comfort and security, albeit wholly false.

Where, oh where, might any gods be but in the minds of humans who created the immaterial realm in the very beginning of our time. HItchens has explained it, so has Shermer; and many others. The supernatural does not exist, except in the minds of those who imagine it to be. GROG

Some do but a lot of don't.

It seems there is a constant. We have quotes such as History is written by the winners, or those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it, we see it out there but that also happens in an individuals life. Its happened in mine and Im sure many here can say the same. I think searching for answers is part of the battle for peace. Love the peaceful warrior movie. i don't actually know if socrates said it and i think whether he did or not it doesnt matter its the statement that matter. "I call myself a peaceful warrior... because the battles we fight are on the inside" The battle for peace. I've spent years in recovery, codpendent's anonymous and counseling to me is simply maintenance. I have other meetings and I practice peace because i think most can agree that no matter who you or or what you believe in or dont. Step by step heart to heart left right left we all fall down like

The biggest reason I can think of is that we all like to have answers. As non-believers we know that nobody has all the answers, but you do secretly feel superior to others if you think you are smarter. Religious people seem to be deluded into thinking they have most of the answers and god will provide other answers later in heaven.

Hopeless feelings

Different reasons.

DO most humans love a religion? i am not so sure about that. many identify themselves as affiliated with one religion or another. i wouldn't characterize that as love. that is a strong connection, there. in addition, sometimes it's not love but fear.

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