What would it take to convince YOU?
I know why I believe in a God and the afterlife. LittleToe has his reasons. Dansk has his beliefs and his reasons. And the vast majority of humans throughout history have come to the same conclusions we have - not in detail, but in the general sense that there is something more, something that seems mystical to us - something like 95 percent (I heard this on Contact, so I might need to research this ) have believed in things like special creation, divine intervention, etc...
You do have a couple of points, which show your intelligence. One is that religion is no excuse for sloppy thinking. Another is that the existence of God would take extraordinary proof. We concur with you. We have been given that extraordinary proof, whereas you apparently have not.
I had a post where I listed just a couple of the things that I considered my "special proof" but I was mocked, and laughed at. Shrug. I have said it. LIttleToe has a whole website somewhere. And Dansk is the one who is struggling with mortality - you might do well to listen to him. I know, you are 21, you think you are immortal. I'm 27 and that particular delusion is starting to fade. But if you are seriously looking for answers - rather than just trying to mock believers into acquiesence, then why mock what you don't understand yet?
The Native Americans used to send out their young to survive on their own. That's how they learned there was a Great Spirit. The struggle to survive, the realization on how easy it is to die, hunger, privation... you came back to the community with a renewed sense of purpose and a new devotion.
You have also said that this is a "useful delusion" - but how can any delusion remain useful for thousands of years, in all cultures and civilizations? How can the spirit world remain the crux of all arguments about what to do on earth, even after all this time and discovery and science? You shriek, why? I say, because it is true.
What LT was trying to tell you through the Africa thing was this: Your spiritual Proof, which is what you are actually asking for, will come when and where it is most beneficial for you. If you can slide through your whole life without experiencing it, you probably will. But if you actually NEED the proof, then it will happen. It will be something you won't expect. Something that if you tried to explain to someone else, it would sound silly and trite. But in your heart you will know it to be what it is.
Or not. Shrug. Not my problem, really. Sorry you agnostics feel outnumbered. It's um, because you are. But HEY, have a nice day! I make a point of being friendly to small minorities and to Put Them At Their Ease.
CZAR