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Look at the Scouts' Oath in an historical context. When Baden-Powell was developing scouting, EVERYONE believed in God (atheists are a modern invention, didn't you know?). So the inclusion of God in the oath was simple boiler-plate oath building. No one would have accepted an oath that didn't invoke a deity. The intent was to emphasize the importance of adhering to cultural norms, of becoming good, law-abiding, functional adults. It was not intended as an affirmation of the existence of God (everyone already knew he existed), or a promise to abide by any particular sect's interpretation of his wishes. The oath was a ritualistic appeal to a higher power.
Nowadays, atheists abound, doubt is rampant, and people are free to say things that would have gotten them ostracized, stoned, or beheaded a couple of hundred years ago. Today, the oath actually has more meaning than was originally intended for it. That an atheist would want to be a Scout, in spite of the reference to God in the oath, is no more surprising than a non-Catholic teaching at a Catholic school. It's about the teaching, not the religion. Scouting is about the life-skills, not the oath.
So give the poor kid his Eagle Scout, and concentrate on the meaning of scouting, not the words.
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The secret to great marksmanship is deciding what the target was AFTER you've shot.
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