I think if I were going to wage memewar against Islam, what I would do is seed the middle east with a competitive religion, and my choice would be classical Mormonism.
It’s a variation on Book religions, close enough to the Judeo Christian Islam axis to be compatible, (including polygamy and a patriarchal culture structure) but it offers a later prophet, an evangelical mode of growth, and a tradition of warrior priests. Further, it has proved itself flexible and effective in adapting to the modern world, enjoys a central command structure, and is amenable to western-style free market capitalism.
It would be interesting, to say the least.
UPDATE: And would put an interesting gloss on a Romney candidacy, wouldn’t it?
Submit to Stumbled Upon!
Is a new book in the works?
At the conceptual stage, yes.
And I intend to use this blog as a primary resource. Frankly, politics is beginning to bore me. Further, the notion that we can predict with any accuracy even five years into the future is beginning to look more and more like a mugs game to me - at least concerning what is likely to be the result of political-economic measures in train at the moment.
I think Mormonism is a good way to go, Bill.
If I were the LDS, and decided to engage in aggressive missions in the Muslim world, I would start in Lebanon, where there is already competition. Go after the Christians and the Druze first. If I could gain conversions in those communities, I would have an awful lot of power and a united front against the Islamists. My missionaries would be God’s warriors; very well trained in small arms and tactics, and able to operate in both urban and field environments. Essentially develop a private army with a solid NCO cadre. Small, mobile units of ruthless, deus lo volt Mormon holy warriors would be a force to be reckoned with. Make the emphasis on conversions, backed up with firepower. Integrate the converts and train them accordingly. Then move on. From Lebanon, I would move clandestinely into Northern Syria and start working on the Kurds. Conversions in that area could spread into Turkey, Iraq and Iran.
Yeah, I could see something like that. Mormonism expanding into heavily patriarchal Muslim cultures. It develops a bridge to bring the converted Muslim cultures to modernism.
Of course, the problem starts when you have a huge, heavily armed, motivated Mormon jihad army full of fanatical converts. What’s to stop them?
Hey, I’m just babbling and watching the snow fall.
Somehow I never think of you guys getting snow down there.
That seems a workable strategy, by the way. The first battles would probably be between Mormon Missionary Fire Teams and Hizb’Allah cadres.
That Global Warming will kill ya.
Several western states would probably be willing to foot the bill if they could get the FLDS groups to go.
We’re supposed to get 8 inches overnight. It doesn’t snow much here, but there are times when it’ll surprise you and dump a ton of the white stuff. Which would suit me fine; I could use a snow day.
As far as strategy in this scenario; it would be predicated on the missionaries as being a cross between Mohammed’s holy warriors and the Mongol hordes. They could only succeed with utter, pure ruthlessness. Opportunity to convert first. If not, no second chance.
If this was occurring during a global meltdown, then perhaps it could move along pretty swiftly. I wonder what the Israelis would think?
Sicc the Mormons on the Muzzies? Jeez, you are heartless. And yes, I would donate heavily to the cause if it would get the dimwits to stop leaning on my doorbell.
Hell, I’d JOIN the Mormons if they were serious about having a go at the Muslims.
Heh, I’m with JC.
I just posted this pic for bernard
I’ll post it here. You do not see this too often in Charlotte.
It snows so seldom here, I had forgotten just how quiet it gets with 4 or 5 inches. Then, SNAP, like a rifle shot as another tree limb cracks.
“I think if I were going to wage memewar against Islam, what I would do is seed the middle east with a competitive religion, and my choice would be classical Mormonism.”
Why not go with the religion that *is* winning the meme war with Islam. The fastest growing religion in the world is not Islam — it is Christianity. It’s just not the Christianity of the traditional dying liberal churches. The Methodist church has lost 400,000 members in the past 10 years. The other mainline liberal churches that most secularists think of when they think of “Christian Church” are not doing any better. The UCC is hemorrhaging.
Where are they going? To the more primitive charismatic non-denominational churches and home churches. Churches like the Assembly of God and the Church of God, Cleveland are growing by leaps and bounds. The Mormons are doing well, also, but not as well as the combined charismatics.
It is these charismatic evangelical sects that are also growing by leaps and bounds in Latin America (to the dismay of the the Catholics), in Africa, and in underground home churches in places where Christianity is persecuted such as China (growing at 12-20 million adherents per year). China is sending missionaries to the Middle East. Numbers for Egypt are uncertain, since apostasy from Islam is punishable by death; however, some presentations I’ve seen by underground evangelists in Egypt have been pretty amazing.
Take a look at Philip Jenkins “The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity.” It’s not the Christianity that most people think of, but it’s growing by leaps and bounds.