Why believe?

This is a work in progress. As I come to accept that there is no God, and bone up on all the rational arguments against His existence, I find myself wondering why people choose to believe. The following list represents my thoughts thus far on the subject. I'm pursuing this because I do think that belief in any god does more harm than good for most people, and especially for society as a whole.

People don’t choose to believe in God because evidence supports the theory that He exists. People choose to believe because in our society, it is their best option. It is a fully rational choice to make. Here’s why:

1. Social Convention. To disbelieve is to go against the powerful forces of conformity and tradition. Those who do not believe are portrayed as a threat to the American way of life and all that we as a nation hold dear.
2. Family and peer pressure is similar to convention, but more personal. Being an atheist challenges the dearly held beliefs of those close to us, and there is no denying that this causes friction and misery. The fundamental rift between believers and nonbelievers is irreconcilable, so most of us keep our atheism to ourselves.
3. Self image. Atheists are seen as cold rationalists, lacking all normal feelings of sentimentality and romance. They are thought to be arrogant, unable to feel humility before the magnificence of “the created order.” They are less sympathetic characters than suicide bombers to most Americans. They are considered unelectable to any public office. Coming out as an atheist is harder than coming out gay.
4. Social networking. Churches, mosques, and synagogues are vital centers for social and business networking. Furthermore, sharing a faith confers some degree of trust automatically, because it is assumed that the same moral structure is in the heart of each member of your religious community, plus there tends to be a narrow socioeconomic spectrum within most church/mosque/synagogue communities.
5. Perception of ethics/morals. Atheists are thought by many of the faithful to have no moral center and no reason to behave ethically. Although this represents a grievous misunderstanding of most atheists, who often come to atheism because they feel a deep need to know the truth and be part of a rational society (in which ethical behavior is the result of fully internalized reason rather than some threat of punishment by an all too forgiving deity), this belief prevails. I wonder why believers think we’d all revert to monsters if God weren’t watching.
6. Odds/benefit ratio. To believe is thought to cost you nothing, and even if the likelihood that there is a god is immeasurably low, the benefit (eternity in paradise) is infinitely high. It is the ultimate lottery. Statistically, it makes good sense to believe. The same is true of the inverse, the threat of eternal hell. The risk that hell exists is immeasurably low, but the price is immeasurably high if it does exist, and it costs nothing to believe. Of course you buy in. The truth is irrelevant.
7. Avoidance of pain. Losing faith is like losing a loved one. At least it was for me. There is no fatherly figure listening to my pain, loving me despite my imperfection, carrying me through the rough patches. My ultimate imaginary friend is dead. I still grieve, especially at Christmas and Easter. Both occasions are absolutely hollow and banal for me now. I resent having to participate, though I try to rationalize that generosity and festivity with the people I love is worthwhile in any guise. The most painful part, though, is when I have lost a loved one. The thought that I will never see them again is unbearable, and the thought that every relationship will eventually be severed by death terrifies me.
8. Preservation of mystery. Who wants to live in a world without magic, mystery, and miracles? What do we do with our overdeveloped temporal lobes if we cannot participate in worship and prayer and divine ecstasy? We seem to have been designed for faith. I don’t believe we were.
9. Vestigial survival trait. We evolved to seek pattern and meaning because that is how we learn. Historically, the gaps in our understanding of life, the universe, and everything were huge, and we needed something huge and godlike to fill them. As these gaps, though still immense, begin to shrink, and the fabric of existence takes on a more distinct and comprehensible shape, God ceases to fit. The urge to believe in God is vestigial.
We also evolved to be social creatures. Faith has provided a shared sense of identity to hold societies together, and also the strength to believe we can prevail even when prospects seem bleak. Belief is a survival trait.