Thats fine, you don't have to really believe in god to have morals and live a fulfilling life.

I don't really have a belief structure myself and can be considered a pluralist, I suppose.

You focus so heavily on the word "God" but don't forget about the word religion, which does go hand and hand with god but can act upon itself and be independent.

"Re" = Again
"Lig" or "Ligio" = Join or Connect

The word religion suggests the joining of our natural, human world to the sacred world.

So with this ideal we can conclude that buddhism is surly connected to religion at least to the true definition of the word and not the politically correct version we are so accustom to in our daily life. (I know most would disagree with this)

I have not been through this entire thread but I do hope no one is forcing ideas on you because this is for you to really find.

Some people you may be interested to look into.

Rudolf Otto - He wrote a book called "The Idea of the Holy" and in it argues that religions emerge when people experience that aspect of reality which is essentially mysterious. He called this the "mystery that causes trembling and fascination" or "mysterium tremendum et fascinans." Basically he explains that we take our existence for granted and live with little wonder, but occasionally something disrupts our ordinary view of reality. An example of this, a strong manifestation of nature, such as a violent thunderstorm, may startle us. It is an aspect of reality that is frightening, forcing us to tremble (tremendum) but also feel fascination (fascinans). The emotional result is what Otto called numinous awe. He pointed out how often religions art depicts that which is terrifying, such as the bloodthirsty Hindu goddess Durg.

Or you can take the opposite to this and look into Karl Marx

Marx calls religion an opiate for the masses. But even he felt that religion has a good and a bad side. Marx ultimately though religion was for social control and called it a symptom of the sickness of society.

This of course is more a Philosophical construct of religion and all religions.