Furthermore, the value of the conclusions drawn in the column is questionable. Regardless of how we understand and describe reality, we must accept it for what it is. Each of us feels that we have free will. Of course not. Regardless of the true nature of free will, we feel that we have it, and as humans, we must accept it as such.
Reality is what it is.
How we choose to describe it or understand it does not change it. I am personally unsure of religion's role in my life, but I'm leaving myself open to wherever experience may lead me. We can debate arguments for and against the existence of God, the soul, and free will for hours on end, but the nature of each of these is such that only personal experience will lead us to belief. All of us, theists and atheists alike, have our doubts, but each of us crafts our beliefs more precisely through the experiences we have each day. I'm not sure it does anyone justice to prechart their path through the waters of personal philosophy via a simple dichotomy of despair and belief.