[dkarl]

I think in any community that is gratified in some way by a belief, there's a spectrum from actually believing at one end, to enjoying the camaraderie and enjoying the belief as a conscious fantasy at the other end, and I think people who inhabit the "conscious fantasy" end can slide towards the "true believing end" via suspension of disbelief, like people do while enjoying a movie or a role-playing game.

When the community is something like a sci-fi fandom community, people on the actually believing end of the spectrum would be considered mentally ill, while people on the camaraderie-and-fantasy end are considered well-adjusted. In a religious community, it's more complicated, and people on either end of the spectrum might be accepted or stigmatized depending on the religion itself and the point of view of the beholder.

Either way, if you think of fandom communities and religious communities as analogues, you wouldn't expect these communities to go away until people can no longer get gratification they want from them. I don't know how that can be accomplished.