Well, first let me wipe the egg off my face for being the anonymous initiator of this thread. I didn't realize that my cookie had crumbled until I had a chance to visit again today. Somebody above used the phrase "light striker", meaning, I think, a sub-category of "flammer." I think that is creativity, and applaud it.

As to the topic of the thread, I neither had nor have any interest in bashing any particular brand of religion, but am very interested in the views of our family members on the generic topic of proselytizinig. My interest was stimulated by a book I've been reading which a friend brought me: "A Handbook of the Scottish Gaelic World" by Michael Newton(ISBN 1-85182-541-X). He makes the point that when different cultures come into contact, there are three typical response options: traditionalist (in the extreme form, "death to the other guy"); syncretist (maybe they've got something we can use); and, assimilationist (let's be like them). He observes: "Whether we look at Native American society, Gaelic society or any other society which stands at the cross-roads of tradition and Modernism, there is debate, sometimes even violent conflict, about which path to follow. The differing responses and lack of agreement can lead to factional in-fighting which only strengthens the position of the newcomer and creates a stereotype of the native as innately prone to division."

In Newton's book, the above is set in the context of "traditional" societies encountering a "Modernist" society, but it seems to me that current events are better thought of as the inverse.

Thanks to all for their sentient contributions to the discussion, and , again, my apologies for posting anonymously, even if inadvertently.