Often modern rational people are not aware they've surrendered their experience of meaning to the theory of evolution, where in the old days it was surrendered to religion.

Often you hear modern skeptics speak like, we do things to preserve the self, or to preserve the "race".

Theories of evolving are not the same as truths of meaning.

Even though in many senses religion was more restrictive, in the search for meaning it might have given more useful answers.

Useful in the sense of practical.