Holy Envy. How Does Instiutionalized Religion Fit Into Our Modern Society?

Essay from the year 2011 in the subject Theology - Comparative Religion Studies, Seattle Pacific University, language: English, abstract: The world most of us in the west live in, is one of convenience, maximizing the ease with which one can indulge his or her appetite has always been an objective of developed societies. Today, you don't need to leave your house for practically any reason if you don't want to. You have online schools, online shopping, online work and online dating. You no longer have to wait for or make your own food, your TV is on demand, you can listen to any music anywhere with the click of a button, and you can spend days pretending to be anything you can think of with the help of a gaming console.
Based on these observations, one can argue that, 'everything at once,' is the end goal and motto of the modern developed society. With this in mind, the question of how does institutionalized religion fit into this modern society arises?