God: A Human History

by Reza Aslan

the problem with relying solely on these kinds of archaeological finds to date how far back in time religious expression may have existed is that beliefs do not fossilize.

Human beings worship gods for the same reason a child idolizes his father: We need love and protection; we want comfort from our deepest and darkest fears.

Almost everything Freud wrote about the origins of the religious impulse has been debunked.

creation myth that arose from the Ancient Near East, the Quran expressly rejects the belief that God created human beings in his image. God has no image. He has no body, is of no substance, takes no shape in any form, human or otherwise.