Sigmund Freud is widely known for his somewhat strange views on religion. One of his main points for religion is the Oedipus concept. Freud is a firm believer in the idea that people who seek out religion are looking for some sort of security. He believes that people follow religions to give themselves a purpose in life and to have some sense that something bigger and greater than themselves is out there watching over them and guiding them through life. Freud said that Man has surrounded himself with religion to insure immortality in another life after death.
According to Freud’s Oedipus theory, everyone has a complex childhood relationship with their mother and father, which ends up causing problems in later life for these individuals. Freud’s theory is that it is human nature for someone to seek out something to replace their parents, such as, religion. The Oedipus concept causes problems for these people and they use religion as a socially acceptable way to work through these problems caused by our constant emotional distress from this theory of the necessity to find security in a mother or father figure replacement.