Marx on Religion

"Religion is the opium of the masses".

This is amongst the more popular of Marx's quotes, that usually finds approval from non-Marxist atheists as well. Also the one that is used often to illustrate the invisible chains and false hopes that binds people to God. Marx, though himself an atheist, was more sympathetic to faith than what the above comment and latter day Marxists would have us believe. The above quotation has a context and is more fully rendered as:-
"Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people."

Marx thus saw religion as the balm that soothed despoiled people and their conditions. He also advocated atheism vigorously, but envisioning a future in which the soulless conditions of bondage and exploitation would be removed by a more equitable distribution. It is nobody's argument that such conditions have ceased to exist or likely to go away any soon. One can argue, on the other hand, that transient and fragmented life in the modern cities has only served to strengthen Religion, of the more militant kind very often. It provides the much needed moorings that many believe they are in danger of losing when they move away from their native places. One can empathize with such need for a primordial connection, even when it sometimes burns the seekers further rather then heal them.