The Religious Void

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

But most structured religions - the Catholic and Anglican churches, Islam, Presbyterians and Baptists, to name a few - obviously have no compunctions about engaging in politics.

Hmm I'm not necessarily suggesting that religious people and institutions are not involved in politics. Rather, whether the particular kind of involvement people have is religious in nature.

For example, the psychologist Jonathan Haidt described some campus protests that occur when conservative speakers are invited to be religious. The protesters behave as if the campus grounds were sacred, and the speakers are impure, and their presence threatens the holiness of the place. Likewise, some Trump supporters do have an uncanny cult-like attitude towards the politician.

So the question is whether having an actual religious outlet prevents this kind of religious behavior in otherwise secular places (not just politics).

It looks as though you’ve answered your own question. If people - religious and irreligious - engage in religion-like behaviour, it seems moot as to whether being part of a structured religion mitigates religious behaviour in non-religious arenas.

Boru