Fear

Fear is inherent to the human mind.
Faith in something transcendent is the ultimate consolation. We should approach God through love, but love is fickle. Fear persists.

Managing that fear is the chief virtue of a leader. Machiavelli defined it in the Renaissance, but it was already practiced by the sorcerer of the first tribe. Abrahamic religions have always led individuals using their fear, recreating a fearful god who threatens us with eternal punishment.

Fear is a can of preserves: fear created by the human mind and macerated in the oil of religion.