Religion & Spirituality is a good place to practice critical thinking and strive toward cogency.. agree?

Yes. I do agree. Your point is well founded in scripture, but it's not just critical thinking, it's deep personal study of all scripture over an extended period of time.

In Acts 17:10,11 Paul and Silas went to Berea. Now these were noble-minded people, students of the gospel, and they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were true.

-- There's nothing wrong with asking meaningful questions. The problem we see most today is that people are dug in to paganism, pantheism, evolution, or general science and expect scripture to make some sort of a proof to the contrary. That's not being open minded.

2 Tim 2:15 calls us to "study to show yourself approved unto God", a workman doesn't need to be ashamed when rightly dividing the word of truth.

-- Rightly dividing the word of truth means study, determination, perseverance and hard work.

2 Tim 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;

-- In order to train, teach, reprove, research or correct you must know what you're talking about.

Students are taught, or should be taught, critical thinking. I call it 'playing devil's advocate.' Question even that which you know to be true. Open mind required.

Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. Heb 11:1,2

For example: Gen 1:1 says "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters."

How many people know what the term "Spirit of God" means? Most dictionaries and lexicons will tell us that this is God, the Trinity, etc. If referencing John 1:1-3 and Col 1: 15-17 we find that it's Jesus. But the formal, intimate intent of the earliest Hebrew with which it was written it would have been translated "He, who for us who was pierced, moved over the surface of the waters."

Think about it. In Genesis 1 Jesus was there, fully involved in the creation process.

Another example. In the Old Testament there are several renditions of several words, lord and angel are just 2. When we see LORD, we see Jesus. An angel of the Lord is an angel (messenger) from Heaven. An angel of the LORD is probably Michael or Gabriel or one of the Archangels. An Angel of the LORD is Jesus. We see these variations many times.

Yes, but I have the feeling you don't want that kind of answer. Am I being cogent?