mully_and_sculder t1_je2s7le wrote on March 29, 2023 at 12:07 AM

Reply to comment by venomweilder in TIL that in Chinese Folk Religion, a mortal human being could ascend into godhood not through the decisions of a clergy/church, but by the sheer number of people who believe that their extraordinary achievements led to apotheosis, which forced Confucian/Taoists clerics to canonize a person as a God. by Khysamgathys

Pretty much I'd say. Several presidents and founding fathers seem to meet this description. Even in his time Washington was seen as the unimpeachable spiritual father of the nation.