I would argue that humans are less religious or superstitious in general than we ever have been in recorded history. It wasn't even 200 years ago that the Catholic church formally denied the existence of a heliocentric universe. Those scant few hundred years are an eye-blink in the context of the tens of thousands of years of human existence, and since then we've made great progress in the promotion and acceptance of science as a tool to describe the physical and natural world. Religion per se isn't an evil entity; when the world seems too complex or scary, many people can only find comfort in believing that someone is watching out for them and will make sure their next life (afterlife or otherwise) is a better one. What's problematic is when any viewpoint or belief system, be it religious or scientific, is taken to an extreme and the believer refuses to live life with an open mind.

Joe Burdo
Assistant Professor of Neurobiology
Bridgewater State College
(My bizarre and/or nonsensical rantings may not reflect the beliefs of those who sign my paychecks!)