Is Hawking an atheist because his body is all jacked-up by ALS and he's in a wheelchair?

I am religious, and am disturbed by insinuations that Dr. Hawking is an atheist merely due to his physical condition. He is likely a non-believer because he has done research and arrived at his own personal conclusions regarding the existence of deities. I do not feel that there is a correlation between his disabilities and his beliefs. Instead, I think that he has examined various beliefs, and like anyone else, has the right to accept or reject any beliefs he wishes. He is a highly intelligent man, and has reasons for thinking as he does. Just because he arrived at a different conclusion about religion than I did doesn't mean that I'm ready to patronize him by shoving his arguments off onto his status as a disabled individual.