We would rather reject evidence than change our sense of who we are.
This is as good an expression as any I’ve ever encountered of the psychological trick of religion. Once a person’s entire sense of personal worth is invested in their religious identity, especially if they had no sense of self-worth before being ‘love-bombed’ by ignorant yahoos, intelligence cannot be recovered. This is exactly why it is so important to never let people forget that they’re are no damn good, and that only their group membership rescues them from the punishment they deserve.