In life, do you think we first have experiences and based on those experiences we develop

[Chemisse]

2. I think experiences precede beliefs.

In the case of religion, that often means children being brought up under a belief system, then automatically adopting it as their own as adults.

In my case, a unit on Greek Mythology in sixth grade made me realize that the Christian god was just the end result of a whole evolution of beliefs. I didn't change overnight, but began pondering it, and within a few years had shifted entirely.

Of course our own personalities determine how we react to these experiences. I would bet, for example, that I was the only student in that 6th grade class who wound up abandoning Christianity.