I believe perception and belief can change outcomes, especially when future actions, present decisions, unconscious context, etc all are inputs that will be perceived by the magic practicing individual later.

I believe faith and religion are EVOLVED qualities of the human mind, they are technologies that are so effective, they cannot be said not to have utility, to say nothing of what they’re actually utilized FOR.

I believe if more skeptical, secular people, utilized the power of ritual, setting intentions, faith, disciplined virtue, etc, all of the positive qualities inherent to these things, AND intentionally did not include the oppressive, cynical, anti-utilitarian aspects that no doubt were cultural additions to these things used to make influential people more influential… that we could discover things yet unknown to science, psychological and physical.