The Mind Virus of Religion: Why Are We Still Doing This?

I t is 2025. We have sequenced the human genome, mapped the cosmic microwave background, and developed artificial intelligence capable of composing symphonies and diagnosing diseases. And yet, somehow, vast swaths of humanity—including, heartbreakingly, young people—are still pledging allegiance to ancient fables, clinging to a mythology that has been refuted by reason, evidence, and basic common sense for centuries. If religion were simply a personal quirk—like an affinity for astrology or homeopathy—it would be one thing. But it’s not. Religion is a mind virus, an intellectual parasite that thrives on uncritical thinking and the suppression of doubt. As Richard Dawkins put it in The God Delusion , religion is "a process of non-thinking" and "a meme that prays on the gullible and the indoctrinated.” And indoctrination is key. Why else would an 19-year-old raised in a world of science, reason, and instant access to information suddenly decide that the unprovable metaphy...