In the olden days of yore, religion explained the mysteries of
the physical world by attributing their causality to the
unfathomable agencies of the spiritual world. It was convenient as
almost anything could be attributed to the mysterious and wondrous
ways of the god/gods, and it satisfied the natural curiosity of
most men in those times. Moreover, organised religion was an
efficient and effective way for rulers to control the population,
in the absence of well-developed mechanisms of state.
However, now that science has explained most of the causes of
natural phenomena, religion's role as a paradigm of causality has
been eroded. Hence in many developed societies science has replaced
the role which religion occupied. Religion is now in a state of
flux and crisis, as it has yet to find a new role to replace the
one which it has lost.
