I am unsure of the thrust of your argument, although the Quartz read was entraining. Perhaps the central issue was our susceptibility to BS?
As one who is very susceptible, I was entertained and intrigued. However the cheap shots at those of us who are religious a tad condescending. I assume the author is a Materialist, although he either lacks the insight or instinctively hides his assumptions because he knows they are weak.
It takes courage to peer over the lip of the yawning chasm of our ignorance. Materialists take refuge in the backwaters of knowledge. How does one prove the past exists for instance? I can argue from two directions that interpretations of physics experiments indicate that it doesn't. Time itself betrays the materialists.
There are other anomolies that confound the Materialists belief system. Even the direction of cause and effect are based on an assumed belief. I could go on but I have a belief that one should keep these things as brief as possible.