The great strength of Hinduism is that it can effortlessly absorb other deities and beliefs. Joseph Smith will end up being just one more Hindu demi-god.
Plus, I don't see how the "plan of salvation" will be that appealing next to the Hindu system. I'd rather have a belief system where I get multiple chances of succeeding (reincarnation) rather than just one chance (mormonism).
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/02/2012 02:45PM by archytas.
Note to admin: better purchase more bandwidth for the RFM server. Non-mormon Indians will be coming here in droves to find out about the latest religious scam to come to their shores.
Derived LDS Statistics Approx. Active Members: 1752 Percentage of Members Attending Church Weekly: 25% Average members per congregation: 269 Average active members per congregation: 67 LDS, as percent of population: 0.0006% Active LDS, as percent of population: 0.0001% LDS, as percentage of churchgoers: 0% National population per LDS congregation: 40964230
But it is a new beginning for the Indians and after Romney gets elected, Indians will be so impressed with LDS faith and how LDS empasize education which Indians seem to also and many more stakes will have to be built with all the new Indian converts.
IOW, there were about as many Roman Catholics in India then (1997) as there were Mormons on the entire planet, including all the inactive Mormons. And Catholicism was considered a minor religion in India (about 1% of national population)
Now, 15 years later, LDS Inc has managed to scrape together enough members to form one stake. Whoop-dee-doo. I bet a good chunk of those members are foreigners, mostly Americans, on corporate transfers to India, and a good chunk of the rest are people who converted as students in the US. I doubt there is very much internal growth in India itself.
I look forward to seeing how many stakes there are there 20 years from now. Maybe they can reproduce the "success" in Russia over the last 20 years.
That stone rolling forth seems to be stuck in the mud. :)
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/02/2012 02:14PM by Brother Of Jerry.
My sister told me TBM's in her ward see Romney as the church saving the constitution that is hanging by a thread. The constitution is just about gone, I agree with that but when Mitt is saying corporations are people and saying Dick Cheney would make a wonderful Vice President I doubt him and his neocon friends have much interest in restoring the people's constitutional rights.
Thomas Jefferson once said the problem with organized religions is they tend to support the dictator so they can continue to exist. Very true. The LDS Church supported Hitler and even turned in LDS members of the resistance to the gestapo. My 30 years in the church taught me one thing. The church doesn't care about it's members. It takes their money and runs them like slaves and never says thank you and constantly expects more. Much like the government does.
I think I'm just going to write in Towelie from South Park for president. At least a towel is useful.
I'll guarantee pretty much all the leadership is and half the members. I know our company has a lot of expats in Hyderabad.
When we moved to the Florence, Alabama area in the early 90s, a whole bunch of Mormons moved there because of an aerospace program that was moving from the Hercules and Thiokol companies in Utah to Iuka, Mississippi and most people lived in NW Alabama and drove the 30 miles. When this happened, it gave them enough people to split the ward (something they'd needed to do for awhile to split up the Hatfields and the McCoys), although it gave them two barely functioning wards that have since been recombined. The whole leadership were these Utah "expats." The stake (Tupelo, MS stake) leadership was the same. Mostly former Utahns who were now professors or administrators at University of Mississippi. But pretty soon they have this big article in the Church News about the growth of the church in Alabama and the Southeast, like it was because of the missionary work. They made a big deal out of splitting the Huntsville, Alabama stake, which was also done due to people from the Moridor moving out there for aerospace projects. The whole 5 years I lived there I never saw one quality person get baptized.
I'm sure it's the same in India. Even if they do have a ward with native Indians, it will be part of a bigger stake with a lot of Americans. But articles like this make the sheeple go "baa" and "all is well in zion," and they think the stone is rolling forth. And it's all BS.
Follow the money. Where does the tithing money come from? The western United States. They build these temples to support the illusion that the church is growing world wide so the members back in the states will oohhh and ahhhh and get a buzz that stone cut out without hands is rolling forth unto every nation. Brother and Sister X will percolate with spiritual euphoria when they sign the next tithing check knowing that those sacred funds will continue to build such temples so the great messiah and usher in the millennium, burn up all the evil people, cleanse the earth and brother X can get more hot young wives because polygamy will be restored.
Actually building a nice temple first and then using it to attract new members in India might not be a bad idea from a corporate perspective. The publicity surrounding a new temple in this area will be large enough to bring in some curious newbies. Even if not, it would stand as a p.r. tool, like the upcoming Rome and Paris temples.
My ex's parents served in Sri Lanka. Damn near killed her ultra fearful mom. I laughed my butt off when they got the call. Her mom thought they were going to their deaths. She had mental issues while there cause she couldn't deal with the culture shock.
Her dad had one thing to say about the converts there. They had three reason why they came to church.
1. To take advantage of all things american because they were so poor.
2. To take advantage of all things american because they were so poor.
3. To take advantage of all things american because they were so poor.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/02/2012 05:30PM by AmIDarkNow?.
Wow, this really is impressive! If MORmONISM keeps growing like this, MORmONISM really might end up amounting to a pimple on a pimple on the butt of traditional Xtianity..... a non Christian pimple that is!
Wow there are 6,000 Eastern Indians who feel that LDS member ship will give them some kind of a leg up on doing business with Americans..... and a 1000 that are just plain old dumb enough to be counted as MORmONS.
Indians the CULT wants as tithe payers are English speakers, well educated, and very internet savvy. They won't be joining in droves and they won't stay.
One stake in one billion people - not even a margin of error.