[LukeBMM]

The Battle for God by Karen Armstrong has been a huge influence in how I view and interact with folks who are resistant to change. While the book itself is about religious fundamentalism, the primary thesis - that fundamentalism is a repeatable, observable reaction of those who feel modernization has been forced upon them and those folks inevitably go on to create something entirely new and unique as a response in their efforts to preserve "the old ways" - is shockingly applicable in a wide range of cases. I've thought about this both while responding to RFPs and chatting with neighbors, for example.

From the preface (or maybe chapter 1, I forget and gave away my copy so I can't check):

    Modernization has always been a painful process. People
    feel alienated and lost when fundamental changes in
    their society make the world strange and unrecognizable.
    ... Fundamentalists feel that they are battling against
    forces that threaten their most sacred values. ... Those
    of us — myself included — who relish the freedoms and
    achievements of modernity find it hard to comprehend the
    distress these cause religious fundamentalists. Yet
    modernization is often experienced not as a liberation
    but as an aggressive assault.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_for_God

[f0e4c2f7]

This book sounds absolutely fascinating. Lately I've taken to modelling some of people's seemingly unusual behavior as a sort of religion or mythology and it fits remarkably well.

Looking forward to reading it. Thanks for mentioning it.

[cpach]

IIRC I haven’t read this specific title, but I’ve read one of Armstrong’s books and IMO she’s a formidable writer/thinker.

[LukeBMM]

Agreed, having read a few of them. Also surprisingly approachable.

[andrei_says_]

What are some positive approaches to interacting with the fundamentalist mind?

[LukeBMM]

This is tough because it's less a matter of tactics, but awareness. Reading about Jews radicalized to martyrdom by the inquisition doesn't exactly give you a hands-on toolkit to address the issue of fundamentalism in society today.

It does, however, serve as a reminder that folks who dig their heels in when presented with a new development that contradicts the familiar - myself included - are going through a shared, relatable process and the end result of that is always something new. It's inherently going to be its own kind of advancement or progress, even if the intention is preservation of the status quo. That leads to thoughts like, "What does this person want to preserve?", "What new development could come out of this and is it useful to consider?", and "What does this person fear this new idea will disrupt?" Those are handy thoughts to keep in mind when trying to reach a common understanding of the change at hand.

"The fundamentalist mind" isn't an alien, foreign reaction held by a few disillusioned radicals, but a totally normal and relatable coping mechanism (albeit taken to a horrific extreme in some rare cases). That serves as a basis to talk about it constructively, IMO, whether I'm dealing with a new client who wants to change everything (but without changing anything, naturally) or my uncle who proudly shares misinformation from Facebook that supports his comfort with "the way things used to be." This includes questioning my own motivations when I catch myself jumping through hoops to make my old beliefs or practices work in a new context.

[andrei_says_]

I hear this as “allow yourself to see the other’s humanity and acknowledge their needs”.

I get it. The thing is, in some cases their humanity, their needs and beliefs have been carefully weaponized to support a certain ideology and hardened against change.

The ideologies using mass manipulation in this way are objectively exploitative and destructive on a large scale.

To the point of threatening our biosphere, our basic freedoms, our lives.

I do acknowledge the value of the inner practice.

The propaganda machines however work at scale.

If we are to survive, we need healing at scale, too.

We need self-awareness at scale. Seeing each other’s humanity at scale - to contradict the mass dehumanization efforts aiming to divide and conquer us.

Any thoughts on this?