Something else I wanted to add to this, for all those who demonise religion.
The fault with demonizing religion is that you are not going deep enough to find the root cause. Religion was created by people, and it wasn't like it was just a fluke, or freak occurrence. There are many religions all over the world, in every corner of the globe. So, the problem at the root is human psychology. With no religion, people will still be irrational and tribal, and they will just look for ideologies to become brain washed with to give them a sense of meaning.
One possible solution, understanding ourselves better, developments in modern psychology becoming more mainstream.
It makes it sound like
"don't outlaw this drug, people will find other drugs to get addicted to anyway!"
It also is a feeble defense that backfires on itself since it implies that Religion is
bad.
"There are worse things, but everyone's going to pick something that's going to make them sick anyway, so it's not like our product is a problem!"
It misses the point that having it exist at all just gives more avenues for the bolded to happen, and that just because people might be irrational, tribal, and brainwashed enough to pick up something else, it doesn't change the fact that each
'ideological brainwash' are all uniquely harmful in their own ways.
"You'll die either way so what does it matter if I shoot you in the head, poison you, or break your legs?"
They're not interchangeable. They are unique enough that they can overlap in different ways. But if you're getting poisoned and shot in the head both, your chances of survival get very, very bleak.
A huge part of the unique problem that Religion brings is how, no matter how you cut it, it's indoctrination. Your feelings don't matter, your thoughts don't matter, you get it shoved down your gullet as fact and you're not allowed to question it-
and from a horrifically young age. If this was anything else we'd be calling it grooming, which is a crime. The power imbalances inherent in it can be toxified to the point of severe harm and younger folks (children) and women are the ones getting uniquely disadvantaged here in a way other brainwashings might not even do.
Go tell a kid she's going to be tortured for wearing a crop top and she's just a piece of meat to be aged and ripened for a husband and you'd be a twisted creep. But that's just what a lot of toxified religion is doing. And unlike MLMs or cults that is widely demonised for what it is, religion (and especially so in the past) does not have that 'social check' that can save and prevent people from them. If you're turning Atheist you're still gonna get shat on for it but if you escaped an MLM people would be telling you good riddance. It's full of fear tactics and outdated systems that aren't allowed to be questioned, and are inherently unhealthy.
I'm not even someone who would demonise religion. But I heavily dislike its approach and I do believe that it stunts people. The risk is too high, the benefits too low. The middle ground is to let people choose in their adulthood, but
"religious people", especially the nutty ones, are never going to do that.