He was Catholic, believed in God, but, on the other hand, he was a great believer in the role of science and the fascinating beauty of God's creation. After Galileo heard the sentence of condemnation, he had a final conversation with his supporter and friend, Malvasi*.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › articles › PMC5871402
Galileo Galilei: Science vs. faith - NCBI - NIH
this was all before the atheist stole it (science) with their monkey religion.
Yeah, but back then you "had to be Catholic" or you'd get burned at the stake, so that isn't really a fair attribute.