Your universe is full of threat, and that wouldn’t change if your entire universe was one tiny little room. People have always known that merely existing in their environment carries a significant risk of death. Knowledge of a bigger universe simply increases our awareness of doom.
As for an increase in secularism, I think that belief always finds purchase, and it doesn’t have to be in things we typically describe as religion. It’s not difficult to find people that believe things they either can’t explain (which is science, for lots of people) or things that are demonstrable bullshit (The Secret is a best selling book).
Belief has utility. It wouldn’t exist if it didn’t. Anything with utility can be preserved by natural selection. The same belief of Gods that built the Temple also built the entire society and infrastructure required to build the Temple. A myth created something real.
Your universe is full of threat, and that wouldn’t change if your entire universe was one tiny little room. People have always known that merely existing in their environment carries a significant risk of death. Knowledge of a bigger universe simply increases our awareness of doom.
As for an increase in secularism, I think that belief always finds purchase, and it doesn’t have to be in things we typically describe as religion. It’s not difficult to find people that believe things they either can’t explain (which is science, for lots of people) or things that are demonstrable bullshit (The Secret is a best selling book).
Belief has utility. It wouldn’t exist if it didn’t. Anything with utility can be preserved by natural selection. The same belief of Gods that built the Temple also built the entire society and infrastructure required to build the Temple. A myth created something real.