Has there ever been a time in your life when you thought that religion might be a viable option? I ask because I was raised in a nominally Methodist family, even though my parents weren't practicing (I found out many years later that my father left the faith when he was criticized for defending a young single woman who had fallen pregnant. Wish I had known that while he was still alive). I attended Church, Sunday School and even the youth group.
What I found as I grew older, however, was that the people of the Church could not answer questions without reference to their religion. Even as a young pre-teen, I was having difficulty in accepting the concept that every thing could only be explained by reference to God. So my faith was weakened but not broken.
I finally lost faith altogether when a nephew was diagnosed with bowel cancer at around 12 months of age. The, I'll admit well meaning, Church goers all spoke of how it was God's will and how He works in mysterious ways. Not a lot of comfort for my nephew or the family and absolutely heartless in the eyes of a young teenager.
Damn, never thought I'd put that out there. I'm so glad for the anonymity of this site.