Pew includes "nones" (atheists, agnostics and those who say their religion is “nothing in particular”) in its research on religious groups.
So I certainly understand why Burke used the language he did. Still, I'm not sure I'd choose that same terminology. Even with his explanation, I lean more toward my first thought that I wouldn't consider atheists a religious group.
If this discussion seems a little (or a whole lot) esoteric, I'll confess that I once served as chairman of The Oklahoman's newsroom style committee. We spent hours debating matters such as how to refer to directional street names or whether to abbreviate Oklahoma as "Okla." or "OK" in news copy. (Don't get me started on the insanity of "OK," which was the style at one point.)
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