Is religion making people less intelligent?

During 1800s, Anthropologists had a problem as to how to
classify human beings. One researcher proposed the
expression "intelligent animal". After advanced studies on
monkeys, it was dropped. Another researcher proposed "tool
using animal". After observing some animals making wooden
tools and sharpening them with knife like stones, it was
dropped. Another researcher proposed "weapon using animal".
A decade ago, a rare film was shot by an amateur in an
African forest. One short monkey was hit very badly by a big
monkey. The short monkey prepared a wooden knife using
stones and hid it on the top of a tree. After some days,
when the big monkey came to attack the short monkey, it ran
up to the tree for the weapon it has hid and killed the big
monkey. The one thing that the anthropologists found with
any group of human beings, even if they did not have
contacts with the out side world for thousands of years, is
that they have spirituality with some form of religion. So,
man is a "spiritual animal" if you want to call him that
way.

The Upanishads say that "Manush" (human) was so
named because he has "Manas" a mind higher than
that of the animals which realizes the divinity in
creation. It was present since the creation of
human beings. Religion is the characteristic
feature of most of the human beings. It was not
attained through reasoning using mind. Illiterate
tribes located in inaccessible forests also have
religion. It is as eternal and and as unchanging
as the Almighty. Disbelief by a few will not
affect it.

"The percentage of atheists in the world is less
than 5%"

http://www.positiveatheism.org/india/s1990c48a.htm

"Atheists are all scientists" ?

http://www.non-religious.com/statistics.html

Religion is not a blind following. It is a sub-consciously driven
group ritual. It calms the 'collective unconscious' mind. The
religious culture brings unity and belongedness among the followers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collective_unconscious

" Are Atheists More Depressed than Religious People?

In recent years, the view that religious belief and
participation in religious acts of worship has a positive
effect upon the well-being of man..."

http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=buggle_20_4

"Is a Belief in God Beneficial? Or, What's an Atheist to Do?

1) Religious attendance is correlated with longevity.
2) Religious belief has been associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms.
3) Religious beliefs may help with addiction.
4) Religious attendance is correlated with lower blood pressure.

http://jewishatheist.blogspot.com/2006/01/is-belief-in-god-beneficial-or-whats.html

Although most religions and spiritual beliefs are clearly
distinct from science on both a philosophical and methodological
level, the two are not generally considered to be mutually
exclusive. A majority of humans hold a mix of both scientific and
religious views. The distinction between philosophy and religion,
on the other hand, is at times less clear.