People turn to religion in times of joy and times of pain, but are religious people actually any happier than those who don't believe?
HuffPost Live host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani talked with a panel of religious experts to discuss new findings that show people with spiritual beliefs are happier than those without them. Empirical evidence backs that up, according to David Myers, a psychology professor at Hope College.
"Here in the U.S., of those who are not at all religiously engaged, 27 percent have said they're very happy ... compared to 48 percent who are engaged in religious activities or worship more than once a week," Myers said.
So are people who aren't religious fated for a life of misery?
"I don’t think it means that secular people are doomed. I think it means they have other ways of getting to the same avenue," said HuffPost Senior Religion Editor Rev. Paul Rausenbush.
But for people who are religious, faith and happiness go hand in hand. Just ask 19-year-old blogger Hidaya Nawee.
"Because I have a sense of community and a sense of whatever happens God has my back, it's very hard to not be motivated when you have something to fall back on when everything falls apart," Nawee said.
Learn more about how religion could be a sure route to true happiness in the full HuffPost Live conversation below.
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