Whether or not God exists is inconsequential to the human experience

[naut]

Hmm. I'm more of the opinion that given the vastness of the universe, and the strangeness of the universe, whatever a human being can conceive of as "god" must, by definition, not be god. In other words, if you can picture it, you're wrong. Which does not exclude a maker, a creator, or an animating force. It just means that we are literally bacteria trying to describe a five-act opera. We are necessarily unable to conceive of god in any way that might be accurate.

I'd have to agree. There are so many gods on this planet alone, imagine how many gods there are across the universe if there is a minimum of one other sentient life force. Gods we can't even conceive of, gods not created under the influence of our human nature.

When you look at the size of the universe you can decide there may be a creator, but you will never know what it is, because you simply cannot conceive it. And it doesn't care for you or this planet, otherwise it wouldn't have made such a massive universe. When you look at the flawed nature of so many things in the universe you start to realise that it doesn't care if you live or die, or any being lives or dies, otherwise it would have designed you with a lot less flaws. What it seems to appreciate is life itself, the tenacity of life and the strength of life, from single cell to multi-cellular organisms.

For many people the belief in God is hope, and hope makes a tremendous psychological difference for them. Is a life without hope inconsequential?

Life isn't meaningless for atheists or agnostics, they create their own reasons and meanings for life and living. Those who believe in a religion either can't think of their own or are unsatisfied with the meanings they create, so borrow someone else's, IMHO. That's not necessarily a bad or a good thing, as religion creates community within the religion, but also excludes those outside of the religion. Some people need that belonging and hope, some people don't.