Posted by:
b9k9
(
)
Date: September 14, 2016 09:03PM
I've been an atheist since I was a teenager. I have no interest whatsoever in either proselytizing reason or critiquing different religious doctrines.
While I know many here are dealing with the traumatic effects of the leaving the LDS, my primary curiosity is how did the church become so successful in the first place?
That is, from a marketing and product development perspective (think product R&D at companies like P&G and J&J that do extensive market testing), what unique "offer" did JS provide to potential converts that separated him from other competing religions?
While all religions focus on a couple main points (eg life after death, moral behavior, etc), the truly breakout stars like Islam & LDS appear to exploit certain characteristics of the general population at large.
I'm talking, of course, about property & sex. JM's genius was to offer both - in copious amounts - in an era of suppressed opportunity. As the US constitution was less than 50 years old, no one had really tested the limits of the 1st amendment until Smith pushed the boundaries with respect to multiple wives.
Reviewing the history of the LDS in both MS & IL, JM was on record as promising refugees land and estates of the former owners as the church gained strength.
Granted both property & sex were promised through mainly peaceful means. Whereas Islam, OTOH, grew tremendously fast because the "expectation" time frame was dramatically shortened: all one had to do was conquer a neighbor, take control, and reap the rewards ie property & sex.
My question to this board is: does anyone spend any time thinking about this angle? And if they do, is it conceivable to design another religion following the same basic strategy? It seems to me the religion market is fairly stagnant, with only Scientology really attempting to achieve new market share.
One of the promises of advanced DNA research, is mankind is getting very, very close to understanding completely how the brain operates & functions. If you were a political leader, would you want your supporters to be fully rational (by applying gene therapy on a population wide level) or would you want them to remain faithful to belief?
I hope you all the best in your efforts. However, the next step is to transcend what you personally experienced, and view the advances in scientific understanding as a compelling conundrum to those who enjoy power & privilege over weak minded individuals.