Simplification for the Benefit of Sounding Smarter Doesn't Always Work
(Q) said:
Uh, yeah it is, check the definition.
Common dictionary, or academic?
(1) Jane grew up believing that the Universe is the result of a guiding force. But she has no care for the moralization and preaching, and lives her life from day to day doing right because it's the right thing to do. She doesn't know for certain that there is an afterlife. She has not attended church since childhood, does not promulgate, and if asked to explain her theology does not do so, as the guiding force she believes in is a mystery for her to understand, not knowledge for her to preach. By your definition, she is religious.
(2) Joe does not believe in God. But he loves flora. Indeed, he finds something psychologically rewarding about his relationship with trees and plants, which even includes talking to them. Certainly, he has many rituals, which he performs regularly, planting trees on a specific occasion each year, and finding metaphors, insights, and other psychointellectual rewards in thanking the trees for the apples, or the roses for their beauty. Despite his irrational beliefs in his relationship with trees and repeated ritual performances, he is not religious—at least, according to your standard, since there is no god at the heart of his behavior.
Academically speaking, religion does not require "God". It simply requires a higher cause. If we limit "religion" to mere failure to reject the theistic proposition, such fundamental notions of religious function as creed, code, and cult—which have specific definitions in academia—become irrelevant.
Creed— What a group believes.
Code — How those beliefs translate into praxis.
Cult — How the group honors its beliefs—i.e., worship.
These are elements found in any theistic religion, and many non-theistic associations with religion-like aspects.
It certainly makes it easier to criticize "religion" if you have no obligation to comprehend what you're criticizing.