"And besides - no Religion has ever come up with a cure for disease, advanced medicine, pain killers, the invention of electricity, steam engines, motorcars, washing machines, power stations, violins, trumpets, CDs. MP3s or any of the other billions of technological and medical advances that make life increasingly worthwhile."

In any given generation Life has always been worthwhile. From a purely evolutionary point of view, life is always worthwhile. Without life there is no progress in any species.

The things you make mention of above may not have been done/created by any one religion BUT they have often come about in the light and faith of religious conviction. Many of the people involved in many good works have belief and believe they are doing what they do in the eyes of God or under Jesus' divine instruction. Can there be any harm in that? These people are not 'preaching the Gospel' so to speak, but are carrying out what they believe is God's will. Should they be denied such inspiration or have no right to do that?

Whether or not they actually are is open to interpretation dependant on on'es own belief system. Anyone doing good and using their spiritual base with it cannot possibly be doing anything bad.

Likewise many who do bad also believe they are doing God's work or are under divine instruction. They are two sides of the same coin I suppose. One cannot have one without the other (though you would wish you could).

And then there are atheists and agnostics who also do good and bad under no spiritual banner. All are part of the fabric of Life. Perhaps one day we will evolve far enough to manage to have one without the other. I would hope the good survive, but the chances are there will always be power mongers willing to get it in any way possible who use other things in life to get it.

Get rid of religion and something else would take it's place. Imagine a world without a religion. Do you see a world of peace then? Probably not. Because humans hide behind banners of various labels and names. Politics, business, military, tribal, supporters of this team or that.... no religion there but there is plenty of competition and power grabbing. Money is at the bottom of a lot of it.

Let those who do good have their hopes, faith and belief. In whatever they believe. That very force is often what drives many a discovery just as much as someone who is not religious is just as capable of great works. We need them all.

mp