I was talking with a close friend tonight about religion. We were talking about the ways that religion serves people. I'm interested in what others might have to say about this.

What I suspect is that people who desire / need / more extrinsic controls in their lives tend to be drawn to more "controlling" kinds of religions. That is, traditions that tend to have very black and white kinds of rules. In the more obvious way, I've seen examples of people who have had chaotic and complex kinds of lives be drawn to very structured churches. These churches offer very clear guidelines for how to live and tell people how they should be thinking about important issues.

People who have more intrinsic centers of control tend to be more drawn to traditions that have more flexibility in their structures; their rules, so to speak. In fact, people who have more intrinsic centers of control would be more likely to rebel against traditionally strict religions.

And it's not that I'm saying one is better than the other; it's just interesting to think about what draws someone to something. Another question that I have is whether people are naturally born with more or less ability to have intrinsic controls (the old nature vs nurture discussion). As a parent, it was much more important to me that my son be able to think clearly and independently make decisions about right and wrong that weren't based on fear. Now, I think that all of us make some decisions based upon "fear of being caught", but whether or not I support gay marriage or divorce or birth control is my own decision rather than a decision made by others and imposed upon me.