And just real quick on the belief issue, you say "the principles to which we truly adhere" provide a guide to our future behavior. I would agree completely. But I think that those principles are ultimately derived from past behavior alone. For example, I say I believe in Environmental protection for a variety of good reasons. But if I'm not recycling, protesting, and advocating toward that end, how can I really say that belief exists at all?
This has been an interesting discussion. You ask some tough questions.