In the UK I assume folk fans to be above-averagly educated, liberal rationalists until they prove otherwise. As a card carrying relativist this can prove problematic in forging musical relationships, as most definitions of the material don't lend themselves to equivocation, let alone contradiction.

There's also a strand of folk music that aggregates religion around itself, and not just happy-clappy evangelism but mainstream churches which use the term 'folk club' as a blanket acoustic entre to the religious world via the church hall. Michael Powell the director once said something about art being the equal of religion, at least in enthusiasm. It's hard not to see a folk pantheon that mimics a religious one but, like pointing out the faith required of an atheistic position, more adherents will point out the differences than accept the similarities.