To engage in the idea of a psychological entity, there must be motivations and fulfillments met, at least to the expectation of the individual. A motive means "to cause a person to act in a certain way." Religion causes people to act in peculiar and often, ritualistic ways. The goal of these behaviors is most often the expectations of cleansing, purification, heightened spirituality between God, or a fulfillment of one's needs: security, protection, immortality, forgiveness, love, acceptance.
Based on my experiences with religion and witnessing it in the lives of others, there are numerous and beneficial psychological gains from attaching oneself to religion. That is not necessarily the problem. It is when its based on a lack of evidence of a God that it begins to be a psychological entity. But, of course, this evidence is very subjective and varying person to person.
