Chapter 17;

Mond does not deny the power that religion had in the past world and even claims that he believes in a god. However, he also claims that God has become irrelevant in modern society and now only manifests himself through absence. Huxley presents a strand of existential philosophy that maintains that God's non-existence created a world in which humanity could only find meaning through its own existence. Mond’s society has strictly controlled the parameters of this existence, leaving no room for a god.

John Savage attempts to counter this argument with the example of the Indian civilization from which he came. Religion, Savage argues, comes naturally to man and will never entirely disappear. The religion of the Indians gives great meaning to their lives and provides the ability to endure turmoil and unhappiness.