How is religion a human response in the search for meaning?

Every culture has some kind of religion, and all faiths answer the question "What is the meaning of life?" Humanity's search for an answer to this question is one of the main reasons that people are drawn to religion. The answers, although different from religion to religion, give people's lives purpose, meaning, and hope. Religion is found in all ages and all cultures. Its principles and values have given motivation and guidance to every human …

…which human life can be structured. They also provide a social context that allows us to understand ourselves as part of a community with rights and responsibilities to that community and ways of relating to other communities. Obviously it is possible to find alternative ways of shaping one's personal and social identity. However, history suggests that there are few ways that can match religion in catering for this key requirement in the search for meaning.