Inciting Christian Terrorism:
How Southwest Baptist University and
the Missouri Baptist Convention Turned
Law-Abiding Church-Goers into Criminals
But ... some are asking ... "How could all this happen?"
How could kind and caring, church-going Christians at Southwest Baptist University, in Bolivar and within the Missouri Baptist Convention be converted into little more than merciless terrorists, willing to inflict suffering and harm -- and even commit crimes -- against a student and dozens of other innocents, who were swept (against their wills) into this nasty intrigue?
It wasn't an accident: These individuals were skillfully and deceptively "created," manipulated by the Southwest Baptist University governance and legal team.
They were psychologically, emotionally and spiritually engineered for the specific purpose of becoming a "civilian shield," which was used to conceal the illegal conduct of Southwest Baptist University officials.
How was this accomplished?: By implementing the same psychological methods employed by others intent on inciting terrorism ... and terrorists.
In discussion the formation of terroristic ideologies in individuals (such as the 911 terrorists), author Thomas G. Plante in his textbook CONTEMPORARY CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY defines "five dangerous ideas" that create, in otherwise harmless people, the mind-set necessary for the formation of terroristic ideation.
As Thomas Plante explains (this quotation is enumerated and reformatted for Internet presentation):
For example, Eidelson and Eidelson (2003) have examined research that propels groups toward conflict and violence that have many useful implications for understanding and hopefully preventing terrorism.Early on, Marie recognized that more than a few individuals were literally bullied, deceived or tricked (in varying degrees) into participation in these schemes. Therefore, she sought to resolve the matter privately and internally, showing wisdom and mercy.
They have highlighted five “dangerous ideas [that include] superiority, injustice, vulnerability, distrust, and helplessness” (p. 182) that act as risk factors for conflict and violence.
1. Superiority
Superiority refers to the belief and conviction that a person or group is better than everyone else in a variety of important ways. For example, someone might believe that they (or their group) are the only ones who have a clear understanding of God’s will and plan. This belief has certainly caused wars, terrorism, mass killings, and so forth for thousands of year. This perspective is rather narcissistic in that someone or a group believes that they have some special information, entitlement, or gifts that others do not have or can’t have access to obtain.
2. Injustice
Injustice and victimization refer to the belief that the person or group has been badly mistreated by specific others or the world in general. Although injustice and victimization have been common human experiences since the dawn of time, this perspective can lead (and has) to retaliatory acts and rage against others.
3. Vulnerability
Vulnerability refers to the notion that a person or group is highly likely to experience danger or further victimization and that hypervigilance and preemptive acts are needed to reduce the risk of further harm.
4. Distrust
Distrust refers to the belief that very few people can be trusted and that only the inner circle of true believers can be considered appropriate and trustworthy group members. This point of view leads to paranoia and potential misunderstandings attributing benign others as hostile and malevolent.
5. Helplessness
Finally, helplessness refers to feelings of powerlessness and dependency that often becomes overly pessimistic and negative. This perspective can lead to extreme measures to help feel more in control and more powerful.
These five dangerous beliefs can be applied to the actions of many conflicts between nations and peoples as well as to the terrorism experienced in America on September 11, 2001, and elsewhere.
CONTEMPORARY CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY (2nd edition) by Thomas G. Plante and published by John Wiley and Sons (2004), pages 13 -14.
Still, the culprits hide and will not come out to bear responsibility for what they have done. As a result of this immaturity and cowardice, many others -- believers and non-believers -- will suffer.
What more can be done? Justice demands accountability.
