I have more than once in my time woken up feeling like death.

No true believer could be intolerant or a persecutor. If I were a magistrate and the law carried the death penalty against atheists, I would begin by sending to the stake whoever denounced another.

The fear of death comes from limited awareness.

I went to medical school because I wanted to ask the big questions. Do we have a soul? Does God exist? What happens after death?

Every spiritual tradition has this idea of death and resurrection. It's not unique to Christianity.