text: is religion a need or a want?   on a serious, analytical level, religion is a want. you will not die without it. you can live equally well with or without it, but it is innate in human nature. the desire to understand everything is a need in the human mind. religion satisfies that need, but is not the need itself.  food is a need. lobster is a want. understanding is food, religion is lobster. for some, science is the lobster. get it?