It seems to me what religion has often become is a belonging system or a mere belief system, both of which ask very little of us. If belonging and believing is our primary concern, Mormons and Moslems do that much better than most mainline Christians. If we just want collective authority, all we have to do is attend and affiliate.
Membership questions largely become a negotiation of who's in and who's out, who's worthy, who's unworthy, who's right and who's wrong. This appeals very much to our ego's control needs, and our ego's need to feel worthy, to feel superior, and to feel a part of a superior group. All are lamentable substitutes for actual transformation into the Mystery of God.
See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
Pan's Labyrinth: Critiquing the Cult of Unquestioning Obedience
The Golden Compass: Pointing Beyond Authoritarianism
Conversing and Arguing with the Theology of Philip Pullman
In the Garden of Spirituality - Patrick Carroll
In the Garden of Spirituality - Adrian Smith
In the Garden of Spirituality - Kenneth Stokes
In the Garden of Spirituality - Doris Lessing
In the Garden of Spirituality - Joan Chittister
What It Means To Be Catholic
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