Not believing, but Knowing!

Seems to me that this discussion [with sceptics] has interesting points but gets repeatedly dragged down to the same point of contention: Religion, and most of the time it's Christian religion and the bible.

This is what most of us here (I think) grew up with. Some had good experiences, some not.

Christian religion is a small wedge of the whole pie. Even if you're knowledgeable of all the religions, you will still have only a small part of the picture.

Imagine spirituality to be like an iceberg, where only a small part is visible above the surface: that's religion as a codified system to (ideally) bring men closer to God. This part can be analyzed, its messages put under scrutiny, its efficacy debated. 

The much larger part (in fact infinitely larger) is below the surface, it's the subjective part that can be only accessed and understood by actively practicing, calming the mind and going deep within. 

Now, you can debate about the iceberg tip until your typing fingers are sore or you have a nervous breakdown, but will it bring you even one step closer to the Truth? Nope.

And that's why I can easily say R. Dawkins has no idea what he's talking about. He attacks the tip of the iceberg (more or less successfully) and thinks he has done away with the whole iceberg.

The value of any religion is proportional to the ability to bring its followers closer to God, not just intellectually through belief and faith, but through direct experience of the Divine. 

Not believing, but knowing!