"My father once told me
that there are no gods,
only the cruel manipulations
of evil people
who pretended that their power was good
and their explanation was love.
But if there are no gods,
why are we so hungry to believe in them?
Just because evil liars
stand between us and the gods
and block our view of them
does not mean that the bright halo
that surrounds each liar
is not the outer edges of a god, waiting
for us to find our way around the lie."

from The God Whispers of Han Qing-jao
(Orson Scott Card)