>>678082
The way I see it any sort of religion or faith only has value and authenticity if it is private. The moment it becomes a thing, be that thing an institution or "movement" it loses all value and meaning and becomes just another set of chains and blinkers. Politics by other means. In fact you can make a solid argument that religion is an older form of politics.
For any authentic supernatural belief or faith to exist as a living entity it first needs to be personal and private, being personal and private it cannot turn into a religion in the monotheistic sense. Paganism got it right in the sense that it all fit into a larger system while individual people would worship individual gods the most depending on their psychology, emotional state and position in life. You will notice this is largely and very detrimental to centralized control and thus utilitarian ends, but not completely. Even in this more lax setting things just sort of tend towards control.
I almost feel like we're returning to a new Dark Age. In any case - nihilism is actually right in a certain sense. Acquaint yourself with Taoism. The universe and everything within it exists because it is inevitable that it exists, it has no creator god in the monotheistic sense. If anything, the deity that presumes to call itself the creator is an impostor and a predator. But it is a created being just like we are, but on another level. No, I'm not talking about Gnosticism. There is no Big Guy at the top. The universe, its laws, everything is "as is" because it was inevitable, and it all sprang from non-existence and will return to it. The reason why science and convoluted religions exist yet can't seem to prove anything in any way is because at its absolute core the universe simply IS and requires no further justification. It exists because it does, a paradox, an inevitable minuscule probability that came to be. This is why science gets wrapped up into increasingly complex theories and such, in the end there is no law or rule that makes all of this possible or explainable, yet it exists. Religion flees from this absence of tangibility and certainty into strict bearded men in the skies or devils and so on and on out of the same fear. This whole thing, everything, simply is. And the beautiful absence of God in the usual sense frightens the worthless. Yet even that is inevitable and natural. Humanity feared God into being. That is the actual birthplace of the judeo-christian god.