Religion in it's true form benefits all.
No...the FAITH of good-hearted people benefits all. Religion is just a mark of tribal distinction which was necessary for survival in ancient times when Man had to endure the wild for survival. Right now it (religion as opposed to spiritual faith) only serves to separate us, one from another, and delineate who our enemies are as dictated by ancient times.
The love and peace of people coming together to do good in the world IMO is irreplaceable.
I agree, but we don't need religion to do that. We need less separation and more integration, with a focus on our humanity, not our spiritual depravity/or holiness. When one man is labeled unclean by another man's religion, which was dictated thousands of years ago (in books that have been translated so many times by some scrupulous men and some not so scrupulous men) then "religion" is hindering the love and peace of all people coming together to do good in the world.
I would have absolutely no problem with religion if it were secondary to an allegiance to the human race. Most of the world's religions (especially the Abrahamic ones) place a higher allegience to a world that none of us has any first-hand experience in (paradise/heaven/eternal life with eternal reward) than on this present life and our interconnectedness to each other.
As for the soup kitchens and the faith-based charities...I wonder how long "the good people" would continue carrying out their charity if they were not allowed to proselytize or hand out literature at the same time they were handing out charity, AND had their tax exempt status revoked. The money to run those charities comes from somewhere, and there is someone in charge of overseeing how that money is used, and that person get some psychological benefit out of the kind of power that position entails. Remove that power and that charity will cease to exist.
Always, always, always, follow the money.
I'm not saying there aren't good people who belong to certain religions and hold to certain faiths, but those people would be just as good and generous if the organization they belong to would cease to be. And if those people with their inherent goodness DIDN'T exist without the existence of their religion, then they aren't being charitable at all.
Does it not say more about the character of a man/woman if they do good of their own accord, than to prove they love their deity?