I will start with apologizing in advance if this seems like an abrasive topic, because I literally literally have no intention of being abrasive or attacking anyone’s belief system here - whether you are spiritual, agnostic, atheist, religious, etc. I also didn’t post this in CC because I wasn’t sure if this topic has been covered there or not.

I ask this question sincerely, because recently, I had visited some old friends (a married couple) and was engaged in two separate conversations. I have been going through some religious changes and was asked by the husband if I thought religion was irrational in general because no one could prove the divine. We also talked about about the thoroughly used point that “the world would be better off without religion”. This fella was raised in a Catholic household but now identifies as borderline atheistic. He seems to echo a lot of ideas that New Atheism uses. During our convo, he repeated a few times that he didn’t mean to come off as rude, and he was genuinely interested in my opinion as someone who actively engages in religion.

His wife, she is spiritual and doesn’t particularly adhere to any religion, but she used to identify as Methodist Christian. When I spoke to her of my exploration of conversion to a different religion, she couldn’t seem to understand why I would want to convert to any religion at all.

Now, I firstly identify as a rather spiritual person, but I also believe that religion can enhance one’s spiritual journey. I also do not believe that me being spiritual/religious cancels my ability to think critically or rationally. The husband pointed out a lot of interesting points that I didn’t have answers to at the top of my head, and at one point, I had to ask him, “Does it make me irrational if, after everything we have talked about so far, I still confident in my rationality and I’m not necessarily bothered by the big questions I don’t have technical answers to?” He didn’t really give me a direct answer; I’m not even upset. He’s a great friend and has asked me intriguing questions.

As a religious/spiritual person - do you feel that your beliefs in higher powers or divinity don’t interfere with being rational?

When was the last time someone tried to engage you in a similar conversation as explained above? Did it make you uncomfortable? Why?

Do you feel that spirituality does not compromise analytical thinking?

If you are spiritual/religious but also rather scientific or academic, do you think there are any occasions where you have to “leave your religion at the door”?

I’m not looking for an explanation of your specific religious beliefs or for people to say one religion or belief is superior than an other. I guess I’m looking for a more generalized discussion with concern for rationality/irrationality at the forefront.

Maybe no one will reply, but I have been reading a lot of scholarly articles that hash out this argument and most leave their conclusions rather ambiguous - and for this sort of topic I think it is inevitable, but also one worth exploring from time to time.