Why Do We Have Religion?

It seems very clear to me how religion must have developed.   Just think about early man – facing the rage of nature in the form of thunder, lightening, earthquakes, volcanoes, etc.   Since they didn’t have the technology to understand things,  they attributed these fantastic occurances to some higher being that controlled the earth – god.

Some of the smarter people of that time saw that they could achieve a higher standing in society if they claimed to be able to talk to god.  So we have the first “clergy”.  So it’s pretty evident to me that religion was born out of simple human nature – some have the ability to lead, while most are content to follow along with everyone else.

What really mystifies me is that now that we have the knowledge that totally disproves the whole Garden of Eden and Adam and Eve myth, that so many people choose to ignore those scientific facts.  I can understand believing in a higher being.  But what I can’t understand is why people insist of clinging to these ancient stories that fly in the face of what we know.  This is the thing about religion that I find most interesting – that otherwise intelligent people can ignore what they know to be true,  because they feel the need for spiritualism.  Why haven’t religions evolved like society has?  It doesn’t seem natural to me.