It sounds like you're talking about someone in particular.

I read this as "we are talking about things that are unrelated to the thing we really need to talk about because that's too painful."

I'm prob projecting some recent experience with a loved one where we just don't seem to be in the same page anymore. It's almost like we talk about lawsuits because it's less painful to think about a lawsuit than it is to think about losing someone you love. The brains a tricky thing.

I imagine some people might do this with someone's religion. Talk about your religion instead of the fact that they have some expectation from you, and can't take the pain of rejection, so direct it into criticizing random stuff like religion.