Sir Francis is circling rather close to the truth in my opinion. A priori beliefs are necessary to anneal morality, and the good person, the good life, the good state, with the content of the "good" frankly defined by experience. One can get there with non-explicit religious a prior beliefs, but the road has a higher incline, and lacks certain necessary guard rails on certain rather dangerous curves for the driver who is not cautious and constrained and sensible. It requires a certain disinterestedness, a certain point of view beyond the self. Many have crashed and burned in the endeavor.
So says this near atheist.
Then religion is the noble lie we feed to the savages to keep them from...well, savaging each other? We, the enlightened, can surely discuss things in such terms - how Straussian of us :) - but won't the religious be a bit dismayed at the idea?