The Authenticity of Faith: The Varieties and Illusions of Religious Experienceby Richard Beck Description A psychologist tests Freud's claims that faith is a form of wishful thinking and belief in God a consoling illusion. Is faith simply a form of wishful thinking? Is belief in God merely a consoling illusion? So argued Sigmund Freud in The Future of an Illusion. And the force of Freud's argument continues to be felt as it features prominently among critics of religion such as the New Atheists. But was Freud right? Until now,