Well-reasoned and well-written. You are asking questions that humans have been asking since the very beginning. I'm not sure I'm comfortable with the idea that religion is somehow connected with a true attempt to understand God. In many ways, it does just the opposite. I consider it a human invention to give honor to something that the human mind doesn't understand.
Science, on the other hand, is a rational attempt to explore the nature of creation. The cosmos are vast, but there is so much order that it seems like it takes much more faith to believe things just fell into place by chance, or accidentally, than to believe it was all created by a Supreme Being. If there is a God, and I believe there is--I certainly hope so, for my own sake--then I think he must be amused at the many ways, between science and religion, we try to represent Him, speak for Him, understand Him, and deny His existence.
Science does not disprove God. I think, actually, through science, we've discovered more reasons for believing He exists. If God created all that there is--and science can't prove or disprove that thesis since by the very definition and nature of a Creator-Being He must exist outside of the system He created--then science is nothing more than trying to understand the creation as it was created by the Being. Religion may be an attempt to worship that Being, but, in my opinion, it's a feeble attempt.
Jesus Christ said this: "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship him in spirit and truth." (John 4:24)
Such worshipers must give science its due and not use religion as an excuse for ignoring the clear discoveries of science.
You also have reasoned and spoken well. I appreciate your input.
In what ways do you think religion has failed in the attempt to understand God and do you think it may be as a result of varying beliefs and doctrines as to whom he is, and how he is to be worshipped?
I can only speak about Christianity. There are attempts to honor God through meaningless ritual. When we try to worship the Creator in any way other than through Spirit, then we fail to realize that our feeble attempts to ritualize that connection fall way short.
Example: When Moses went up on the mountain to receive the ten commandments from God, the Israelites made a golden calf. That calf was an idol. It was meant to represent God, because they felt they needed a visual in order to understand Him. But it didn't work. It was just a pile of metal. The image was a far cry different from the real God, and did not in the least resemble Him.
By the same token, Christianity has instituted its own idols in an attempt to create meaningful expressions of worship, but they all fall short. The Apostle Paul told the Greeks on Areopagus that God does not dwell in temples built by man, nor is He served by human hands, yet many Christians call their churches "the house of God" and act as if their weekly worship is a favor to God. This is a feeble attempt to honor the Almighty, but it falls so short that it's a wonder so many people don't recognize it as falling short.