"Are we genetically programmed to be religious? Or is it a choice, all based on learned behavior?"
We are ALL spiritually wired. It is a CHOICE on what we do about it. Learned behavior comes from seeking your choice.
Madonna ... involved with Jewish mysticism is seeking to fill that spiritual void. Others ignore the void. Her "learned behavior" is a product of what is thought to be acceptable for her beliefs.
Scientific evidence, please? Is there a "God gene"? Where is the adaptive value of having the gene, to pass it down to other generations? Why hasn't that gene been bred out of populations where it has been obviously deleterious (Islamic societies immediately come to mind.)
Further, and to the point, even if it is proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is no biological basis for being religious, would we still allow people to pick and choose their religions?
If the opposite was conclusively proved, and we knew for a fact that all people were indeed, "spiritually wired", would we continue to allow people to choose NOT to be religious? Or would our society define it as some sort of mental disorder, since those who choose to be nonreligious are not acting in accordance with their genetic predisposition, and must have been negatively impacted by their environment?