 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
Religion is based, I think, primarily and mainly upon fear. It is partly the terror of the unknown, and partly, as I have said, the wish to feel that you have a kind of elder brother who will stand by you in all your troubles and dis putes. Fear is the basis of the whole thing- fear of the mys terious, fear of defeat, fear of death. Fear is the parent of cruelty, and therefore it is no wonder if cruelty and religion go hand-in-hand.
Source: Why I am not a Christian, 1927.
Reprinted In: Why I am not a Christian and ,Other Essays on Religion and Related Subjects. 1957,
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