As far as the concept of religion went, Patrick considered it nothing more than an interest group, or a large corporation, with little connection to deities.
Was Azeroth short on deities? Leaving aside the animal gods, which of those creator Titans could not be honored as a god? Judging solely by power, even Archimonde and Kil'jaeden at their full strength met the standard for gods. Even Patrick was only one distortion rule away from the False God realm, yet Patrick had never considered himself a god.
In Patrick's eyes, religion was essentially just a spiritual product, or a form of spiritual reading material. Strictly speaking, the reason religion's so-called doctrines and tenets could spread so widely was that they were byproducts of problems in real society. Religion was, in fact, a source of spiritual solace that made up for those problems.
The more rigid a society's hierarchy and the more completely entrenched its classes, the more widely this concept of religion spread. Those at the bottom needed spiritual support to comfort themselves, those at the top needed a spiritual drug to numb the lower classes, and some people simply sought a spiritual outlet. Thus, monotheistic religions emerged to meet that need and became especially popular, allowing all believers to strive equally for a lofty deity in the hope of achieving the goals set out in its doctrines.
As a religion developed, it would gradually form an interest group, much like a financial conglomerate or political party, then gradually extend its reach into real society. As for what the religion would ultimately become, and what would become of those dispensable doctrines, that was almost entirely a matter of luck.
Even in Quel'Thalas, before Patrick's series of reforms, the Sunstrider family had held an arcane sacrificial authority similar to that of a