Questions of faith or questionable faith?

Over the past few years there have been questions on faith in a god (i think he doesn't deserve the capitalized "G") , from me as well as from people i know. when i mention god, i have to say before hand that i want to distinguish spirituality vs religion. spirituality primarily deals with questions of existence, about why we are here and what we are supposed to do. it does not need a god as an enabler and in fact does just as well without his/her presence as in cases like Jainism/Buddhism. Religion on the other hand rather concerns itself with all the rules, rituals and restrictions that god seems to be so in love with.

I have always believed that religion's primary role in society was to enforce proper codes of conduct in absence of strong government or authority. therefore it's basic premise rises from the assumption that humans left to themselves would revert to a primal state where mere survival is what matters. this in turn negates any chances of the survival of civilization or society under which an individual's chance of survival are actually better. The first priest would have understood this perfectly, but to impose one person's sanity on a multitude of stupid humanity would require 'divine' intervention and that's when the first god would have been 'invented'. This celestial judge dispensed justice through his 'priests' and helped to maintain peace in society in face of perceived inequalities in life. as with any political/social system, it succumbed to that source of perennial problems, greed. the priests got greedy and what was worse was that they started believing in their own fabrications. it was a case of delusions morphing into reality. soon people started missing the fine print... that you did not need him to follow the rest of the manual. this is where i have a bone to pick. how come a system that preaches unconditional love for all humanity somehow says that you will be punished just because you forgot to serve him lamb once a year or you forgot to fast once a week. that just seems anathema to the 'unconditional' part of love. after all aren't we all supposed to be his children.?!

i could rant for a few more pages, but there have been more eloquent authors out there who have argued for intelligence over religion :). I am slightly more comfortable in the religions of the East where punishment is restricted to rebirth, but still the rituals and stratification of society in terms of castes in Hinduism and the fatalistic and bleak nature of Buddhism put me off. Confucianism and Epicurean systems appeal better but then that takes you away from religion into philosophy, which is where i think all religions should stop at.

My personal belief system is best summed in these following words of Einstein, particularly the last part in bold.

"I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation, whose purposes are modeled after our own -- a God, in short, who is but a reflection of human frailty."

I leave you with a cartoon sketch. nothing specific against christ. i am against all gods equally. society has already evolved past the easter bunny and santa claus. i am just hoping that god is the next logical step in the process.