All really interesting ideas. It seems to me that being religious is like being in love. In other words, it comes primarily from somewhere much deeper than thought, logic or argument, though all three may be used to justify it. It is a state of mind puzzling to outsiders who cannot 'see' why this person / religion is so loveable. When you are in love, everything looks different, and you come to different conclusions and act differently towards your true love / religion because of it. It can drive you to do crazy things, for good or ill. And no one, no matter how hard they try, can convince you not to be in love / have that faith - because it is not based on convincing arguments. Indeed, the more others try and dissuade you, the more you hold on to that precious thing. Religion and being in love are both based on faith - a deep rooted and intangible belief in something you base your life on that can never be proven.

And, like love, when you fall out of religion you may look back and say, 'What did I? Why did that work for me then?'