Anyone who has ever gone through a conversion or deconversion has experienced an epistemological crisis. An epistemological system is the mental framework you use to evaluate information, essentially it’s how you know what you know. That crisis is among the most painful and confusing a person can go through, a time when you are certain of nothing and across your mind is floating a thousand competing and contradictory propositions.
Unfortunately, that’s what Christians try to create in evangelism and to a lesser extent even with “witnessing.” I’ve had an old friend try this a few times on Facebook, but it’s a trick I know all too well. The basic evangelistic model is:
- Present the information so rapidly (every night) that you don’t have time to research any of it.
- Outline an epistemological system, repeat the same old inaccurate justifications to support it, then reinforce it by using it exclusively throughout.
- Make people feel guilty and then offer them the solution to that guilt.
- Create urgency based on fear through horror stories what is to come (fast approaching end times for Adventists, hell for everyone else).
Without creating an epistemological crisis none of the rest would work since it would all be very obviously absurd. When I was trying to preach that series in Mexico, I had to follow ShareHim’s highly successful program. Working through it, I was able to see exactly how it worked. They may claim that it’s “the work of the Holy Spirit,” but even if there were such a thing, there wouldn’t be any room for it to work. It is a fast paced, aggressive, manipulative slew of BS that rivals the most elaborate and devious of cons.
It’s sad that appeals to authority, red herrings, begging the question, and straight up factual errors can be so effective.