Choosing a religion

Why do otherwise intelligent and educated people believe bizarre things about God and the afterlife?
I mean, people who normally apply a certain degree of reason and thought to everyday decisions based on rational things such as past performance, reputation and testimony.
Let me offer a couple of examples. I recently watched an episode of a popular TV show that rebuilds homes for needy people. One couple featured, were having their home rebuilt. If memory serves me correct, at least one of the individuals was in the education field.
Now for the bizarre. They believed their home was haunted by her ancestors. Okay...so before the home was remodeled they had to have a seance (sp?) to contact these ancestors to get their approval. Yes, this is drama for TV. But I don't think this is limited to the silver screen. Art imitates life, or does life imitate art?
Bear with me for one more example. (I'll try to be vague to protect the innocent). A girl I know well got together with some high school friends a few years after graduation. Again, prior to graduating from college. Her friends spoke about how their beliefs had changed about God and right and wrong to some, here's that word, bizarre, explosive moral issues in the spotlight today. A total about-face from what was learned at home.

Here's my point. Ravi Zacharias a noted apologist stated, or repeated the following--(I'll attribute it to him anyway) that legitimate religion has to answer four basic questions. They are origin, sin, salvation and destiny.
I'll argue that Christianity has answered these all to the greatest satisfaction of any. Time will not allow us to detail all of these, though they have been scrutinized by scholars for 2000 years.
Origin--Genesis: Creation God's creation--everything good.
Sin--Man's temptation (testing in the Garden, I believe literally) and original sin--not Karma etc.
Salvation--God seeing man's condition and in mercy sending His Son for redemption and propitiation.
Destiny--The promise of salvation--repeated theme throughout the Bible, honed and explained by Jesus and his followers in the New Testament.

If we apply these questions to our beliefs, how do they compare to the Bible and the Christian faith? Yes, atheists, naturalists, existentialists, evolutionists, humanists, and new agers may tear these four answers to bits based on their own specific point of view.
But yet, they remain. They remain after 2000 years of scrutiny and attack. They have been embraced by intelligent men and women throughout history. The truths of this faith are inscribed in stone in the highest colleges and universities in the west--witnessing to current student bodies and to the world of their past (and present) meaning.
So what do the haunted ancestors in that house think of that?
...But what do I know, I'm just a poor part-time country preacher.

Part-Time Country Preacher
--Under Construction--
I'm just learning, but it't intent is to be a place to read, comment on basic information on religion, and Christianity. I'm NOT an expert on anything, but have learned a thing or two on the way.

I'm an ordained Lutheran Pastor, no way-out beliefs (that I know of) and I espouse, typical orthodox conservative theology from this perspective.

I serve a part-time small Lutheran Congregation in southwestern Minnesota--Living Word Lutheran in Windom.

Relax, and welcome to my "workshop".
Follow and come back often. I've got a few things stored up to post.
Pastor Tom