Recent data indicates that churchgoers are happier than non-churchgoers. The real reason seems to be that the church community acts as a support group and that this would be the case regardless of whether the religion is true. I would assert that you can’t stop the analysis there. I haven’t seen data for this yet, but anecdotal stories indicate that some church communities intentionally cause more unhappiness for those outside that specific community. So, just a reminder if you see groups touting the line of “join our religious group because you will be happier”. If that group intentionally causes unhappiness for outsiders, don’t pretend that they are “good”.

As usual, feel free to disagree using this contact link. My world view is a hypothesis, not a belief.