Religious people are fond and of saying that atheists are denying god. As an atheist I will counter by saying that religious folks are denying reality.
They didn’t choose their religion, it was thrust upon them. It was a chance of birth. A cultural variable just like their language and nationality. There is nothing sacred about that. But of course they can’t see that.
And whether they stay with it is largely a matter of their overall education and experiences. Those without sufficient counter experiences will not escape it to see reality.
We can’t blame the religious any more than we can blame the welfare dependent generations that society is creating. They are both a function of their limited environment. But we must still hold them accountable for their actions when they interfere with the rights of others.
There is no denying that many people believe in their religion. But that doesn’t excuse their trespasses on the lives of non believers or on other faiths.
Religions aren’t real. But their effects are. So we are still forced to deal with them here in the real world.