Yuval Noah Harari on Religion as one of the three great social glues, along with money and empire:
Religion as a form of social glue.
By Yuval Noah Harari
"Today religion is often considered a source of discrimination, disagreement and disunion. Yet, in fact, religion has been the third great unifier of humankind, alongside money and empires. Since all social orders and hierarchies are imagined, they are all fragile, and the larger the society, the more fragile it is. The crucial historical role of religion has been to give superhuman legitimacy to these fragile structures. Religions assert that our laws are not the result of human caprice, but are ordained by an absolute and supreme authority. This helps place at least some fundamental laws beyond challenge, thereby ensuring social stability.
Religion can thus be defined as a system of human norms and values that is founded on a belief in a superhuman order."
Is this from a particular book, or maybe something else he has written or spoken?
Yes, from his book Sapiens. Highly recommended.
@Mitch07102
Good! I just bought it, but haven’t started reading yet. Looks like I should!
@skado It changed my worldview. I hope you like it.
@Mitch07102
If I may ask, changed your worldview in what direction?
@skado A deeper understanding regarding just how much of what we humans believe is made up. Our myths encompass far more than just religion. It also provided a much clearer, and scarier, lens to view the ongoing, relentless march of technology especially AI. We're f'ed.