Faith, credulity and "intellectual virtures"

I've been writing again lately. I've been working on a book of sorts that I'm calling God and the Gadflies (a name I had for the book before I started the blog) in which I explore my own spiritual doubts: the story, the reasons, the experience and feelings, and how to respond. Here's an excerpt from what I've written lately:

-------------------------------------

There is a time when questioning assumptions and choices is highly valuable and a time when it can be counterproductive. I am a zealot for the value of questioning in its time, and doing it well. Provided that deliberation is a live option, the more important a decision is, the more careful, critical and unconventional an examination it deserves. 

For many people (and increasingly with age), the question of fundamental religious beliefs (or unbeliefs) seems to be a done deal. That’s probably appropriate for many of them. In particular, faithful Christians established in their beliefs can, through their beliefs, be gutsier, more resilient, more devoted and more reliable in the good that they do than if they lived in meaningful uncertainty concerning their basic understanding of things. I respect such people and hope to become like some of them. But the process of maturing into the creatures we ought to be requires different challenges for each of us.

As an intellectual person, I wish to culture and apply my gifts and to grow in character especially in ways relevant to those gifts. I am viscerally convicted of the value of the intellectual dimensions of humility, empathy, fairness, courage, perseverance and integrity. This is an important part of who I am. I believe it should be my aim to be heedful of my limits, owning up to my ignorance and weaknesses and inconsistencies in reasoning; to stand in the shoes of other people, thinking from their points of view as best as I can and responding to what I find as I would wish to be treated and listened to; to apply even and appropriate standards in my thinking; to face ideas I find disagreeable, threatening or detrimental to my own interests with a desire to learn;  to persevere in struggling with confusion and disquieting uncertainties in pursuit of truthful understanding whether I receive praise or discouragement for my efforts, without taking shortcuts; to change my mind in the face of a solid case even when it means swallowing my pride; to favor openness, not hiding from scrutiny and accountability;  and to help us each freely and soberly make our own belief choices without being manipulated or under the spell of intimidating circumstances, for in persuasion I believe the ends do not justify the means.

To me all this is the love of truthfulness and daylight. And through being guided by truthful methods, I propose that rather than simply believing what we want to believe, we can value the truth that meets those who seek it, even if we don’t actually know what the truth is. These principles of how to deal with ideas also play a role in extending respect and goodwill to people who are different from us.

My emphasis on these virtues, coupled with other observations that I will explain in due course, has led me to question the factual claims of my religion.

--------------------------

And I go on. What do you think? Do you agree with the stated values? Do you see blind spots? A particular problem that bothers me from time to time is the notion that maybe Christian faith and these "intellectual virtues" are at odds -- like, say, if faith required biased credulity-- trying to believe a certain thing (period) rather than trying to follow whatever clues you have wherever they lead. Is there any basis for that concern?