My morning epiphany: The one thing they all have in common is why religions persist.
Every religion from the beginning of time has shared one characteristic that has made them successful at gathering and holding on to adherents. Religion treats gullibility as a virtue and rewards it with praise, and since the majority of people seem to be inclined to be gullible, it follows that by praising gullibility (re-branded as "faith"
they reinforce a basic human tendency which allows the ignorant not only to remain ignorant, but to fancy themselves as more knowledgeable than those who do not share their particular brand of gullibility.
It feeds into the need to be "superior" (it's no coincidence that religious fanaticism and racism seem to co-exist in some individuals), the need to belong to an in-group, the need to have their worth affirmed, and their need to avoid the effort of actually thinking about anything.
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