Publicly costly acts of devotion serve to convert nonbelievers, not just reassure fellow believers

Evidence

These kinds of extravagant displays are often seen in influential religious leaders, who then transmit these beliefs to their followers. For instance, the ritualized public self-castrations of the male priests of the goddess Cybele, discussed earlier, were followed by cultural epidemics of Cybele religious revival in the early Roman Empire. This suggests that these public acts of devotion were not only signals of reliability for other Cybele devotees, they were also tools for proselytizing: they led to the cultural propagation of these credible beliefs to nondevotees. A similar dynamic could be seen in early Christian saints. By their willing martyrdom, they became potent cultural exemplars and encouraged the cultural spread of Christian beliefs. What better way to prove one’s sincerity than the willingness to die for these beliefs? And what better way to transmit these beliefs to others than to hold them with irrefutable sincerity? — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 334

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s core question: if CREDs gain converts, then destroying them (fumi-e trampling) not only breaks solidarity but removes the proselytizing engine of the faith.
• ADDENDUM: Supports ‘On Sacrifice’ — self-castration and martyrdom are extreme costly sacrifice as belief-certification and recruitment.