God of the gaps... maybe?

[Exian]

I just got back from a 4 day work trip with a co-worker, and at one point while we were meant to be studying, we talked about our beliefs.

I was surprised to find out that she considers herself agnostic, when just last work season, I complimented her religious tattoo (more as a gentle way to get a feel for her). So I decided to dig in and learn more about her agnosticism. Turns out she's more of a spiritualist/deist which I was a tinge disappointed in, but not much, because she had no problem with me straight up challenging her beliefs. But more than that, and more to my point here, I find that I can't fault vague spiritualists/deists. For one, they have taken the time to question what they were taught, and have spent some time examining their beliefs, which we share in common. But also the main difference that I see between an atheist and a deist is the answer to the question of "Is there a god?".

Now obviously, that's also the difference between an atheist and a theist, but I think there is a distinction that should be highlighted. Our scientific knowledge at the moment has its restrictions, and so some questions are left unanswered. There's no telling if we will ever be able to answer those questions, and the intellectually honest response is to say "I don't know."

So my question is, when you are honestly searching for answers and giving a real effort to inform your beliefs, and you are faced with a huge unknown where you can either go left (there is no evidence of some form of maker) or go right (sure, I'll believe in some form of maker), can you really fault that person? To me, that's still a god of the gaps situation, but I have a hard time faulting the person for it. And I think its because both responses are place holders at that point. "I don't know" is the obvious place holder, but I think "Sure, I can conjure a maker according to what makes me happy" in this context is also a place holder; they clearly have no issue with re-examining their held beliefs should further evidence present itself or they wouldn't have gone looking. I also have to look at the implications. It's not really hurting anything for someone to reach the limits of our knowledge and to make a call, when they've given it just as much effort as I have to reach some conclusion.

What do you think about this? Is this any different than the god of the gaps that attempted to explain, say, the tides or whatever?