Religion presents itself as timeless and universal. Believers often claim that faith is natural, that humans are born with an instinct for gods, and that without belief we would be lost. But history and psychology suggest the opposite. Religion is not inevitable. It is cultural, transmitted like language or tradition. Without people to teach it, religion withers.
Imagine a child born without exposure to religious stories, rituals, or authority. By the time that child reaches adulthood, the chances of them believing in gods are effectively zero.
1. Religion Must Be Taught
No baby emerges from the womb believing in a trinity, a prophet, or a pantheon. Children are born curious, not doctrinal. They ask questions, explore, and learn. Religion enters only through instruction.
As Richard Dawkins observed: “There is no such thing as a Christian child, only a child of Christian parents. The same applies to Muslim children, Hindu children, and Jewish children.”
Without constant reinforcement, religious belief does not stick. That is why faith communities put so much effort into early indoctrination.
2. The Test of Isolation
If a child grew up on a desert island, surrounded by nature but with no religious instruction, what would they conclude? They might invent explanations for thunder or death, but they would not arrive at Yahweh, Allah, or Vishnu. They would not invent communion wafers, prayer mats, or rosaries.
Religion requires cultural scaffolding. Remove the scaffolding and the structure never rises.
3. The Diversity of Gods
Another clue lies in the sheer diversity of religions. If belief in one god were innate, all societies would converge on the same figure. Instead, humanity has produced thousands of gods, each bound to its culture. The Norse believed in Odin, the Greeks in Zeus, the Hindus in Vishnu, the Christians in Christ.
Christopher Hitchens summed this up with characteristic sharpness: “Everyone is an atheist about most of the gods that humanity has ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further.”
Religion spreads the way languages do: taught by parents, reinforced by communities, shaped by geography.
4. The Evidence from Secularisation
We see the proof of this in modern societies. In countries where religion is not imposed on children, faith declines rapidly. Scandinavia, Japan, and much of Western Europe show what happens when indoctrination is reduced. Children grow up without gods, and they live moral, meaningful lives without them.
Sam Harris once remarked: “Tell a devout Christian that the baby Jesus never walked on water, and he is unperturbed. Tell him that the Bible was written by men without divine inspiration, and he loses his faith.”
Faith depends on being told the story. Without the story, there is no faith.
5. Why This Matters
The idea that religion is natural has been used to justify its dominance. Believers say we are wired for worship, that rejecting gods is unnatural, even dangerous. But the evidence points the other way. Religion must be planted and watered by human effort. Remove that effort and it vanishes.
Carl Sagan’s reminder is apt: “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” The extraordinary claim that children are born with faith collapses when you see how belief only survives where it is taught.
Conclusion
Religion without man does not exist. It cannot arise spontaneously. It needs stories told, rules enforced, and rituals repeated. Left alone, humans are curious, compassionate, and creative, but they are not religious.
Faith is not natural. It is cultural. And once you see that, you realise that gods do not make believers. People do.