I'm going to agree with much/most of what you and Godwilling have been saying about the distinction between faith/religion........but..
....
The way I see it I have a spiritual relationship/responsibility with-
God external, god internal, god in others, god in nature......that I call faith...my individual spiritual relationships.
I also have a collective spiritual relationship/responsibility...how my family, my workplace, my community, my nation, my community of likeminded 'faith' companions (multi denominational) and my planet...
all interact. This I call my religion...my collective spiritual relationships.
While I agree- "religion has become... a way to control people in general" I would suggest- less so than in the past and far less control than religious authorities would like to think or imagine. And that, greater independence, has been the increasing trend since the printing press, Luther and subsequent increasing rates of literacy.
It would have been unthinkable for mere peasants such as we to be reading a single (locked in Latin) scripture five hundred years ago...the authorities/in controll would not have it.
But look at us now
...freely reading and discussing all the worlds scriptures at light speed from across and arround the world...literally >out of "controll"<
... exploring and developing 'faith'...examining the parameters and purpose of 'religion'...there aint no "way to control people in general" no more...
we be out of the bag and on the loose!
:shout WhooHoo!