The Cognitive Symmetry of Protestantism and Communism

Lorin Friesen, June 2025

There is an interesting cognitive symmetry between Protestantism and communism which this essay will explore. Both are based in a general written theory in Teacher thought. Protestantism is rooted in theology and a concept of God that come from the words of the Bible. Communism is rooted in Marxism and a concept of history that come from the writings of Marx and Engels. Stated another way, both are ideologies. An ideology uses Teacher thought to overgeneralize from the limited MMNs (Mercy mental networks) of some cultural group.

The goal of this essay is not to integrate existing Christianity with existing communism, as the logo attempts to do, but rather to examine both Protestantism and communism as incomplete expressions of a more complete plan of salvation.

Those who compare Protestantism with communism are usually trying to make Protestantism look bad. Therefore, I need to begin by emphasizing that I deeply respect the Bible. I also respect Protestant theology and much of what the Protestant church used to be. I recently wrote a 160 page essay that interprets the entire book of James as a detailed prophecy of Protestantism. However, I, along with many others, have lost all respect for the parody of Christianity that American evangelical Christendom has turned into, primarily in response to the covid pandemic and the rise of Donald Trump. It is possible that some of the comparisons in this essay are inaccurate, but the number of parallels is sufficiently extensive to strongly suggest that this analysis is fundamentally valid.

This essay will be divided into two sections. The first section will compare normal Protestant Christianity with Russian communism, while the second longer section will compare Pentecostal Christianity with Chinese communism.

The essence of Protestantism was Martin Luther’s statement of ‘salvation by faith alone’, known as sola fide. Romans 3:28 states that Christians are justified by faith, but Luther added the word ‘alone’, which is not scriptural. Looking at this cognitively, ‘faith alone’ means that one is using Perceiver thought to accept certain doctrines as true, but not using Server thought to perform actions. Luther’s statement was a response to the Catholic Church, which emphasized the need to perform Server actions of penance and religious ritual. Going further, Luther insisted that the Bible was the only source of Perceiver truth, known as sola scriptura. This was in response to the Catholic popes making unscriptural and unchristian pronouncements in the name of God. The essence of Martin Luther’s doctrine of justification by faith alone is that biblical passages which state that God has forgiven and justified humans override all personal and social feelings of guilt.

Putting this together cognitively, emotional respect in Mercy thought for the Bible overwhelms Perceiver thought into ‘knowing’ that the Bible defines ‘truth’. The source of the Bible is regarded as more important in Mercy thought than any other source of ‘truth’ within society. Therefore, if the Bible states that the Christian is justified by faith, then this is regarded as an absolute ‘truth’ of God that overrides any social or personal feelings of condemnation. Mental symmetry uses the school analogy to provide a basis for the Christian doctrine of salvation by faith that is cognitively more legitimate, but we are looking here at Luther’s basis for his belief in justification by faith.

Summarizing, Protestantism can be regarded as an ideology for three primary reasons: First, it extrapolates from the specific words of the Bible to make universal statements in Teacher thought. Second, it extrapolates from Luther’s personal experience of being a monk in the Catholic Church to making universal theological statements about justification. Third, it develops a theology that does not include the actions of Server thought. Mental symmetry addresses these three shortcomings. First, it replaces absolute truth based in the Bible with universal cognitive principles described by the Bible. Second, it replaces Luther’s personal experiences with the universal path of achieving mental and spiritual wholeness. Third, it develops a theology that includes all seven cognitive modules.

Turning now to communism, the essence of communism is the focus upon the worker combined with the abolition of private property. Looking at this cognitively, the factory worker performs Server actions to make items while the factory owner uses Perceiver thought to assign ownership. Communism emerged within the environment of the Industrial Revolution. On the one hand, the factory worker could see that he and his fellow workers were all using Server thought to carry out repetitive actions. On the other hand, the factory worker also noticed that the factory owner was not performing Server actions but rather was using invisible rules within Perceiver thought to tell the factory worker what to do as well as take ownership of the goods being made by the factory worker.

This led to the Communist doctrine of ‘salvation by works alone’ in which the factory workers would rebel from the owners and take control of the ‘means of production’. It is a salvation because it promises paradise on earth. It is a salvation by works because it focuses upon the means of production in Server thought. And it is a salvation by works alone because it suppresses Perceiver facts about ownership, private property, the rule of law, contracts, and individuality.

Perceiver thought functions internally by mentally holding on to facts. Thus, Protestantism dealt with internal feelings of moral inadequacy leading to internal feelings of being at peace with God in Teacher thought. Server thought uses physical action to change the external world. Thus, communism dealt with external feelings of physical need by promising an external workers’ paradise characterized by Teacher order rather than Mercy greed. Protestantism uses Mercy feelings of religious fervor to overwhelm Perceiver thought into ‘knowing’ what is ‘true’. Communism uses externally imposed Mercy feelings of revolution to tell Server thought what to do.

Communism can be regarded as an ideology for three primary reasons. First, it also is a dogma based in the specific words of special books written by esteemed authors. Like the Protestant Christian, the Communist comrade also quotes chapter and verse. Second, it extrapolates from the specific experiences of the typical factory worker during the Industrial Revolution to make universal statements about human history. Third, it develops a societal system that explicitly excludes Perceiver thought by abolishing private property and the rule of law. Mental symmetry addresses these three shortcomings. First, it replaces the Server actions of the worker with universal Server sequences of ‘how things work’. Second, it looks beyond saving the factory worker in an Industrial Revolution to a universal path of personal transformation that can be applied to all groups within all societies. Third, it presents a framework for society that includes all cognitive modules.

Summarizing the cognitive symmetry, both Protestantism and communism are based in universal Teacher theories rooted in Mercy respects for specific authors and specific books. Protestantism focuses upon the internal world because it emphasizes Perceiver thought, which internally asserts facts, while minimizing Server thought which performs physical actions. Communism focuses upon the external world because it emphasizes Server thought while minimizing Perceiver thought.

Russian Communism

This symmetry between Protestantism and communism is apparent if one compares the mindset and behavior of these two. I found Elvira Bary’s videos on Russian thinking to be helpful for understanding the Russian mindset. I have not watched all of her videos, but the dozen or so that I have watched have been clear and enlightening.

Russians feel that the Russian Empire is inherently superior to other countries and cultures, and they are convinced that it is important to support the Russian Empire. Similar feelings of inherent superiority could be found historically in most empires. However, Russia is currently the largest country on earth, 1.7 times the size of the second largest country of Canada. The Soviet Union was even larger, being 2.2 times the size of Canada. Similarly, Christianity is currently the largest religion on earth with about 30% of the world population. Wikipedia also estimates that about 35% of Christians are Protestant, which means that about 11% of the world’s population is Protestant.

The words of a book can be regarded as universal in Teacher thought for two different reasons. First, a book may describe principles that apply universally. For instance, a physics textbook describes laws of nature that appear to apply everywhere in the universe. Similarly, using mental symmetry to analyze the Bible leads to the conclusion that the Bible accurately describes universal cognitive principles that appear to apply to all human thought and behavior as well as provide a rational explanation for descriptions about angels, aliens, and spirits. Second, a book will feel universal if everyone believes in this book. For instance, the Bible feels universal in Teacher thought because 30% of the world’s people respect the Bible as a holy text, while only 25% of the world regards the Quran as a holy book.

Similarly, the Russian Empire can be viewed as superior to other countries because it has a better culture and a better society, or because it is larger than any other country. Notice that the Protestant Empire is an internal empire of Perceiver belief while the Russian Empire is a physical Empire based upon telling people what to do in Server thought.

One can tell which of these two definitions is most prominent by examining what happens when the Empire shrinks. France, Spain, and England all had worldwide empires which have now been largely lost. These countries have responded to the loss of their empires by re-imagining themselves as smaller nation states. (America is currently in the process of facing a loss of empire, as shown by the desire to Make America Great Again.) When communism fell in the 1990s, then the Empire of the Warsaw Pact shrank by about one third to become merely Russia. (The Eastern Bloc countries added only about 5% to the size of the Soviet Union.) Russia has responded primarily by attempting to use military force to regain control over its former satellite territories. This indicates that the Russian view of itself as a great empire depends primarily upon the physical size of the Russian Empire.

Protestantism lost its universality in the 1970s when it stopped being the de facto religion of America, the wealthiest country in human history. It is currently attempting to reestablish this universality by reimposing Christian beliefs upon American society under Donald Trump. This suggests that the Protestant view of itself as a universal faith depends primarily upon the extent to which people within America submit to Christian belief.

Looking at this from a different perspective, both Russia and Protestantism are relics of previous eras. All empires used to function like the Russian Empire, using military force to physically impose their will upon the surrounding people. Most of the modern world no longer functions this way, and even the United States projects most of its control through the soft power of culture and economics rather than through the hard power of military force. (This is changing under Trump.) However, Russia still uses military force to control its neighbors, and the Russian people think that this is normal. Similarly, during the medieval era of scholasticism, all learning functioned like Protestantism, studying books written by revered authors. Most academia no longer functions this way, relying upon physical evidence and successful example. However, Protestantism still uses Mercy feelings of religious respect for the Bible to overwhelm Perceiver thought into ‘knowing’ that the Bible is ‘true’. And the typical Protestant believer thinks that this is normal.

Both of these systems hold on to past methods because of positive results. Russia may be the largest country on earth, but it also contains much of the world’s most inhospitable land, where people do not want to live. Soviet communism settled this endless tundra and wilderness by telling people where they would live and what they would do. The human cost was horrible, but the Soviet Union did succeed in exploiting the resources of the Siberian hinterland. Thus, Russia can point to its success in colonizing Siberia as proof that communism works.

The Russian practice of settling Siberia by decree began under the Tsars, and Wikipedia relates that “Some 230,000 Russians had settled in Siberia by 1709. Siberia became one of the destinations for sending internal exiles. Exile was the main Russian punitive practice with more than 800,000 people exiled during the nineteenth century.” This system of colonization was expanded by the Soviet Union. Wikipedia summarizes, “From 1929 to 1953 more than 14 million people passed through these camps and prisons, many of them in Siberia. Another seven to eight million people were internally deported to remote areas of the Soviet Union... Major industrial cities of Northern Siberia, such as Norilsk and Magadan, developed from camps built by prisoners and run by former prisoners.” Such slave labor is a natural expression of Marxism, because it treats everyone as a factory worker who is capable of performing assigned Server actions while ignoring Perceiver facts about identity, private property, morality, or the rule of law. This generated significant national success because Russian citizens and/or prisoners performed Server actions even when Perceiver thought warned that these actions were dangerous, difficult, or impossible.

Blind faith in the Bible is reinforced by moral success. The Bible describes universal principles of moral cause-and-effect. Therefore, submitting to these moral rules will develop the mind, making it possible for a society to function at a higher level. Similarly, violating the moral rules of the Bible will lead to painful cognitive consequences which will be experienced as a loss of economic and social well-being. Thus, those who doubt biblical ‘truth’ regarding morality, sin, and forgiveness will tend to experience negative personal consequences, and these unpleasant Mercy experiences will reinforce a mindset of blind faith in the Bible. Stated more simply, observing and experiencing moral consequences will give people second thoughts about abandoning belief in the Bible.

A holy book is an effective method of teaching moral truth. Morality requires Perceiver facts to be applied to emotional Mercy experiences. But this is difficult because Perceiver thought finds it hard to gain confidence in areas where Mercy feelings are strong. The solution is to use Mercy respect for some source of ‘truth’ to overwhelm Perceiver thought into ‘knowing’ that this truth is ‘true’ and then giving this truth stability by writing it down in a book. However, this is only a temporary solution, because the personal success that comes from following moral truth will cause a person to question the mindset of blind faith.

Russia has the potential to be a wealthy nation. That is because it is the largest country on earth with access to vast mineral and energy resources. And it has gained the expertise that is required to exploit these resources. But becoming a modern country would require making a societal transition from feudalism to modern democracy which Russia is unwilling to make. Similarly, Protestantism has the potential to be intellectually wealthy. That is because it is the caretaker of the Bible, a repository of incredible moral wealth and a door to vast spiritual energy. If I as a single individual can pull so much out of the Bible using cognitive analysis, imagine what an entire group of biblical scholars could do. But that would require making a mental transition from blind faith to rational thought which Protestantism is unwilling to make.

Summarizing, both Russia and Protestantism are empires over extreme climates. Russia rules over the extreme physical landscape of Siberia and has used physical force to colonize this region in a manner that runs roughshod over Perceiver laws about human dignity, human rights, and human safety. Protestantism rules over the extreme emotional landscape of God and salvation and has used emotional force to internally colonize this region in a manner that uses emotional pressure to impose content upon Perceiver thought in topics including personal worth, moral law, and forgiveness. In both cases, this has been enabled by written ideology combined with a promise of future paradise. Notice that in both cases Perceiver thought is being overwhelmed by emotional pressure. But Russia emphasizes the physical Server actions that a person can be forced to do when Perceiver thought is overwhelmed, while Protestantism focuses upon the internal moral system that results from imposing biblical Perceiver ‘truth’ upon the mind.

Two Empires

Looking further at the concept of Empire, both Russia and Protestantism regard other fields as inferior little brothers, and cannot understand why they would want to be independent. Russia believes that it should have a sphere of influence over surrounding countries. The opinions of these small countries are regarded as irrelevant, because all that matters is the opinions of large empires. Saying this cognitively, the powerful MMNs that rule Russian society also impose their structure upon any nearby cultural and social MMNs that are triggered. This imposition of Russian MMNs upon neighboring MMNs is regarded by Russians as good and benevolent because Russia is bringing its ‘superior culture’ to neighboring regions. The idea that surrounding countries would hate this political and cultural imposition and want to become free of it is seen as betrayal and ungratefulness. Russian control over surrounding regions extends to imposing Russian language and culture upon these regions.

Similarly, Protestantism believes that it should have a sphere of influence over moral topics. The opinions of other moral systems are regarded as irrelevant, because all that matters is the moral pronouncements of the Protestant community. Stated cognitively, the powerful religious MMNs that rule Perceiver thought within the minds of Protestants are also imposed upon the moral thinking of surrounding secular society. This imposition of Protestant morality upon neighboring society is regarded by Protestants as good and benevolent because Protestantism is bringing its ‘superior morality’ to secular society. The idea that secular society would hate this moral and cultural imposition and want to be free of it is seen as a betrayal of Western morality. Protestantism control over secular society extends to imposing biblical language and Protestant moral rules upon surrounding regions.

When communism fell in the 1990s, then Western nations thought that it would be possible to tame Russian Empire by economically interacting with Russia in a manner that led to mutual prosperity guided by the rule of law. The assumption was that Russia would be convinced by rational feelings of economic self-preservation. However, Russian economic prosperity has been used to rebuild the Russian army so that it can once again reassert its control over neighboring countries.

This is not a rational response but rather is motivated by deep Mercy feelings of superiority and inferiority. Interacting with other countries as equals guided by the rule of law is regarded by Russians as deeply offensive to the Russian assumption that Russia is a superior empire: Empires rule. Therefore, Russia needs to rule.

Soviet communist rule over satellite nations used to be done in the name of Marxism. The Soviet Union claimed to be bringing the universal Teacher-based ideology of Marxism to the rest of the world, but it was actually spreading Marxism as interpreted by Russia and as controlled by Russians. Russian reassertion of communist empire is not guided by Marxism but rather by a desire to restore the Teacher generality of Soviet Empire.

Similarly, when Protestantism lost its control over American society in the 1970s, then secular society thought that it would be possible to tame American Protestantism by interacting with Protestant morality in a rational manner that would lead to greater psychological and cognitive understanding. The assumption was that Protestant morality could be guided by rational cognitive principles. However, this reformulating of Protestant morality has instead helped to reinforce the Protestant feeling that Protestant biblical morality needs to be imposed upon society. This attitude can be seen in Christian apologetics. Apologetics uses rational arguments to talk about Christianity and morality. But the goal of apologetics is not to use rational thought to analyze core Christian doctrines. Instead, the purpose is to provide a rational starting point for blindly accepting core Christian doctrines.

This is not a rational response but rather is motivated by deep Mercy feelings of religious superiority and inferiority. Interacting with secular thinking as equals guided by rational thinking is regarded by most Protestants as deeply offensive to the Protestant assumption that the Bible, as interpreted by Protestants, is a holy book: Holy books rule. Therefore, Protestantism needs to rule because it is based in blind faith in the holy book of the Bible.

Protestant control over secular morality used to be done in the name of universal biblical principles. Protestantism claimed to be bringing the universal morality and theology of the Bible to the rest of the world, but it was actually spreading blind faith in the Bible as interpreted by Protestantism and as controlled by Protestantism. Christian evangelical reassertion of Protestant control is not being guided by the principles of the Bible but rather by a desire to restore the Teacher generality of Protestant moral hegemony.

I know that these are strong words and I would not have made such categorical statements before the re-election of Donald Trump in 2024. Unfortunately, I fear that these statements are now accurate.

Looking now at the internal mindset, both Russia and evangelical Christendom are ruled by an oligarchy that has control over extensive resources. Russia is a vast land with endless mineral and energy resources. Power and wealth are acquired in Russia by gaining control over these resources, and those who control these resources have become fabulously wealthy. The average Russian citizen has no political power and feels powerless. This huge disparity in wealth and power is reinforced by continual political propaganda from the political leadership telling the citizens to submit to their leaders as well as harsh punishment against any citizens who dare to think on their own or question the leadership. Even those who have become fabulously wealthy by controlling natural resources have to maintain the favor of their rulers because their wealth can be taken away in an instant.

Similarly, Protestantism has a holy book with endless resources of wisdom. Religious power is acquired in Protestantism by gaining control over the dispensing of biblical wisdom. The pastor of a mega-church acquires fabulous moral wealth in the sense of being able to control and guide the morality of many followers. The average Protestant believer, in contrast, feels powerless to interpret the Bible. This huge disparity in moral influence between Protestant mega-pastors and the average laity is reinforced by continually emphasizing the need to ‘trust in the Bible’. The average person thinks, ‘The Bible was written by apostles and church fathers and is being interpreted to me by esteemed pastors. Who am I to think that I can come up with my own moral principles?’ Those who attempt to replace submission to religious authority with rational thought are shunned by religious authorities, causing them to be ignored by the average laity who looks to religious authorities for moral decisions. However, even being the pastor of a mega-church is no guarantee for continuing moral power, because a mega-pastor may run afoul of the Protestant leadership and have his moral authority taken away.

John McCain referred to Russia in 2014 as a ‘gas station run by Mafia masquerading as a country’. (This blunt attack upon Russia by a prominent Republican is quite different than Donald Trump’s current admiration of Putin and Russia.) The point is that Russia acquires most of its physical wealth by selling oil and gas to other countries and not by exporting manufactured goods. That is because the Russian system of tyranny is not conducive to the research and development required to manufacture modern gadgets. Gaining control over the production and export of Russian oil and gas is a major source of wealth for the oligarchy.

Similarly, evangelical Christendom gains most of its societal influence by ‘exporting’ emotional and cognitive energy. The average Protestant believer attends church because of the praise and worship. This regular feeling of personally encountering God provides mental energy to function during the rest of the week in the impersonal and objective realm of modern consumerism. Protestantism is not a major source of academic understanding because a mindset of blind faith in the Bible is not conducive to the research required to gain academic understanding. Gaining control over praise and worship as a worship leader is a major source of moral power for religious leadership.

Summarizing, Russia is ruled by an oligarchy that has control over raw materials as well as energy resources. The average Russian citizen feels powerless and submits to the control of the oligarchy. Similarly, Protestantism is ruled by a religious oligarchy of pastors who have control over dispensing wisdom from the Bible as well as worship leaders who guide the dispensing of emotional energy. The average layman feels powerless and submits to the moral guidance of pastors and worship leaders.

The average Westerner views Russia as just another country, but Russia does not function the way that a normal country does. There is no concept of independent existence under the rule of law in Russia. Instead, all ‘truth’ and all laws are based in people; people with power determine the laws for those below them, they can change these laws at will, and they themselves are not subject to these laws. Stated cognitively, Perceiver thought does not function independently but rather is overwhelmed by strong Mercy emotions. Instead of appealing to rules in Perceiver thought that do not change, one has to continue submitting emotionally to patrons—sources of ‘truth’ in Mercy thought.

This mindset can be seen in the Russian term vranyo which refers to a form of deliberate lie. This is popularly described as ‘They lie to us, we know they’re lying, they know we know they’re lying but they keep lying anyway, and we keep pretending to believe them.’ The purpose of vranyo is not to convey facts or truth in Perceiver thought but rather to reinforce the feeling that the person doing the ‘lying’ is the emotional source of ‘truth’ for the person doing the ‘believing’. The nonverbal message being conveyed is that ‘I am your source of truth. When I speak, then you do not question me with Perceiver facts about reality. Instead, you allow me to hypnotize Perceiver thought in your mind’.

Similarly, the average secular academic views Protestant theology as another academic specialization, but Protestant theology does not function the way that a normal academic specialization does. There is no concept of thinking independently in order to determine moral and theological truth. Instead, all morality and theology is based in revered people; people with religious status interpret moral truth for those below them. Theology is viewed primarily by theologians as a set of doctrines to which one verbally asserts and not as a set of moral constraints to which one submits or a set of facts that describes some reality.

This mindset can be seen in the Protestant concept of heaven, which is cognitively speaking a form of deliberate lie. This lie can be described as ‘They tell us about a heaven that has nothing to do with physical reality, and we know that this discussion about heaven has nothing to do with physical reality but that does not stop them from talking about heaven, and we keep believing what they say about heaven’. The purpose about talking about heaven is not to convey Perceiver facts about heaven but rather to reinforce the idea that heaven transcends the human realm of Perceiver facts and Perceiver common sense. The nonverbal message is being conveyed that ‘When I speak theology, do not attempt to use Perceiver facts of common sense to evaluate this theology. Instead allow these theological words to hypnotize Perceiver thought in your mind into imagining a realm of heaven that violates Perceiver facts of common sense.

The materialistic scientist concludes from such a cognitive explanation that heaven does not exist. Mental symmetry suggests something else. Physical reality, which the materialistic scientist studies, is compatible with technical thought and needs to be observed using concrete technical thought to determine natural principles of physical cause-and-effect and then analyzed using the precise mathematical language of abstract technical thought to find the laws governing natural cause-and-effect. But there also exists a spiritual realm with its own universal laws that resonates with mental networks. Interacting with the spiritual realm requires submitting personally to the cognitive laws that govern how mental networks function. Mental symmetry views heaven as a non-material realm governed by principles of mental networks to which disembodied human minds go after physical death. A human living in a physical body can choose to develop various mental networks. The disembodied mind, in contrast, is irresistibly drawn to either heaven or hell by the nature of the core mental networks that were developed during physical life. (The Bible states that the current heaven of disembodied minds will eventually be followed by physical resurrection with ‘spiritual bodies’.)

Hierarchy and Empire

Looking more closely at the social hierarchy of Russia, Elvira Bary divides Russia into four classes. At the bottom is the peasant who has no power and no rights. Above this is the technician with useful skills. For those at the bottom, there is some rule of law as long as one avoids the attention of the upper classes. Above the technician are those who have control over energy and resources. At this higher level there is no rule of law. Instead, everything is determined by personal agreements and personal connections. Those in the bottom two classes often think that it is possible to appeal for justice to someone in the higher classes. But this is not the case. Instead, at best one will be ignored, and at worst one will be punished for questioning authority. Technicians with useful skills may be promoted by the upper classes and rewarded with wealth and prestige. However, maintaining this privilege requires selling one’s soul totally to vranya from the upper classes. The highest class is composed of feudal lords who rule over many vassals. Finally, at the apex of the pyramid is Vladimir Putin.

A similar social hierarchy can be seen in Protestantism. At the bottom are the laity who fill the pews. Their opinion and scholarship mean nothing, and most laity lack the Perceiver confidence required to be able to think for themselves morally or theologically. Above this is the technician with useful skills, such as the sound technician, the secretary, or the counselor. For laity and technicians, interaction with the church is governed by ethical codes as long as one avoids the attention of the clergy. Above the technicians are the ministers who have control over the energy of praise and worship and the intellectual resources of preaching. At this level power is determined by personal agreements and personal connections. Laity and technicians often think that it is possible to appeal theologically or morally to someone in the clergy. But this is not the case. Instead, at best one will be ignored, and at worst one will be punished for questioning authority. Technicians with useful skills, such as useful musical or speaking skills, may be promoted by the clergy and rewarded with public honor and influence. However, maintaining this privilege requires devoting oneself totally to the vision of the clergy. The highest class is composed of denominational and theological leaders who rule over many pastors and churches. At the apex of the pyramid are the founders of denominations, whose opinions determine the beliefs of their denominations.

A member of the Russian oligarchy will often refer to love of the motherland. But what this means in practice is maintaining the social hierarchy that provides the wealth and power for that member of the Russian oligarchy. Similarly, Protestant leadership will often refer to love for the church. But what this usually means in practice is maintaining the church hierarchy that provides moral power and theological influence for that member of the denomination.

Russian wealth and prosperity are limited largely to the major cities. Living in a small village in the hinterland is often like living in the past without any modern infrastructure or technology. Similarly, Protestant scholarship tends to focus on major theological topics while common moral issues tend to be governed by the traditional moral standards of the past. For the Russian citizen, normal life is like living physically in the past. For the Protestant laity, normal life is like living mentally in the past.

The average Russian tends to view the West as a monolithic enemy without distinguishing between one Western country and another. Those who do distinguish between Western countries tend to focus upon whether these countries have ever fought wars with Russia rather than looking at the culture or political systems of these countries. On the one hand, Russia has a major inferiority complex about the West, because Western countries are capable of producing technological gadgets and material wealth that Russia cannot. On the other hand, Russia also has a major superiority complex in which it is convinced that it is a superior Empire with a superior culture. The inferiority complex focuses upon objective wealth and tools, while the superiority complex focuses upon subjective culture and power.

The average Protestant tends to view secular academia as a monolithic enemy without distinguishing between one academic specialization and another. Those who do distinguish between academic specializations tend to focus upon whether these specializations have directly attacked religious blind faith rather than looking at the knowledge or mindset of these disciplines. On the one hand, Protestantism has a major inferiority complex about secular academia, because it is capable of producing generating intellectual wealth and applying this wealth to reality to a much greater extent than Protestant belief. On the other hand, Protestantism also has a major superiority complex in which it is convinced that it is the custodian of superior truth revealed in a superior book. The inferiority complex focuses upon materialistic, objective knowledge, while the superiority complex focuses upon subjective truth and morality.

The average Russian citizen knows very little about other countries. Instead, most knowledge is acquired through government propaganda which will tend to focus upon the negative aspects of other countries in order to prove the superiority of Russian empire. Similarly, the average Protestant laity knows very little about secular academic thought. Instead, most knowledge about secular academia is acquired through preaching which will tend to focus upon the negative aspects of secular thought in order to prove the moral superiority of Protestant faith.

Russia places a great emphasis upon remembering and celebrating the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War. After the fall of communism, Russia saw its empire shrink as vassal states rejected Soviet control in favor of Western democracy and freedom. The average Russian citizen reminisces about the grandeur of Soviet Empire, conveniently forgetting about the lack of personal freedom. The fall of communism deeply threatened the assumption that Russia possesses a superior empire. This led to an irrational desire to restore empire, even if this means economically impoverishing Russia. Those who resist this expansion are labeled as Nazis—the invaders of the Soviet Union who were defeated at great personal cost in World War II. In the current war in Ukraine, anything that attacks and hurts Ukrainians is celebrated by the average Russian. The goal is not to attack legitimate military targets but to make Ukrainians suffer, even if this means committing endless war crimes.

Evangelical Protestantism places a great emphasis upon remembering and celebrating the victory of Christian fundamentalism over secular humanism during the early 20^th century. Quoting from Wikipedia, “The ideology became active in the 1910s after the release of The Fundamentals, a twelve-volume set of essays, apologetic and polemic, written by conservative Protestant theologians in an attempt to defend beliefs which they considered Protestant orthodoxy.” Wikipedia adds, “The Princeton theology, which responded to higher criticism of the Bible by developing from the 1840s to 1920 the doctrine of inerrancy, was another influence in the movement... Princeton theologians believed that the Bible should be read differently than any other historical document, and they also believed that Christian modernism and liberalism led people to Hell just like non-Christian religions did.” The average Protestant may not be aware of these details but is very aware of secular humanism as the historical enemy that was overcome by Bible-believing fundamentalism. During the 1970s, American Protestantism saw its influence over society being restricted as major aspects of American society rebelled from the moral restrictions of American Protestantism. The average Protestant reminisces about the previous age during which American Protestant morality held sway over society, conveniently forgetting about the lack of personal freedom. Societal rebellion from American Protestant morality deeply threatened the Protestant assumption that the Bible is a holy book with a universal message. This led to an irrational desire to restore the dominance of American Protestantism over American society, even if this means impoverishing Protestantism theologically, intellectually, and morally. Those who resist are labeled as godless liberals—the enemies of Protestantism who were defeated at great cost during the rise of fundamentalism. In the current war on liberalism, anything that attacks and hurts the liberal is celebrated by the average Protestant. The goal is not to attack legitimate intellectual targets but rather to make liberals suffer, even if this means violating the moral code of the Bible.

During the current Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian officers who show competence in attacking Ukraine tend to be replaced by incompetent officers who demonstrate loyalty to the leadership. That is because the primary goal is to maintain the current oligarchy in which personal Mercy status imposes itself upon Perceiver thought. Military competence indicates an ability to use Perceiver thought in the midst of potent Mercy emotions, which by its very nature threatens the mindset of the oligarchic system. The end result is an endless war with no clear goals, whose primary purpose seems to be to make Ukrainians suffer.

Similarly, during the current American evangelical ‘invasion’ of American society, evangelicals who show intellectual competence in attacking liberalism tend to be replaced by incompetent idiots who demonstrate loyalty to leadership. That is because the primary goal is to maintain the current hierarchy of blind faith in which Mercy reverence imposes itself upon Perceiver thought. Intellectual competency indicates an ability to use Perceiver thought in the midst of religious Mercy emotions, which by its very nature threatens the mindset of blind faith in the Bible. The end result is an endless war upon wokeism with no clear goals, whose primary purpose seems to be to make liberals mentally suffer.

Instead of using Russian men to build a better Russian society, the Russian army treats its men as cannon fodder to send upon the enemy in endless ‘meat-waves’. Russian leadership cares nothing about the survival of the average Russian soldier. As of June 2025, over 1,000,000 Russians have been killed or injured in the war on Ukraine. Instead, the hope is that Ukrainian defenses will become overwhelmed by the endless onslaught of Russian soldiers. As the war has progressed and Russian matériel has been lost, Russian soldiers are sent forward with less and less personal protection. More generally, alcoholism is a major problem with Russian men, because getting drunk allows one to temporarily escape the painful facts of reality.

Similarly, instead of using factual knowledge to build a better rational understanding of Christian morality, American evangelicalism treats facts as intellectual ‘cannon fodder’ with which to attack the enemy of liberalism in endless waves of factual barrage. The leadership cares nothing about whether any of these so-called facts survive contact with reality. Instead, the hope is that the defenses of liberal academia will become overwhelmed by the endless onslaught of ‘factual’ information. As this war on liberalism has progressed and the ‘armor’ of factual legitimacy continues to be destroyed, the stream of factual attacks continues, but the ‘soldiers’ being sent forth have now descended to the level of obvious fake news with no protection of factual legitimacy. More generally, moral and societal escapism is a major problem with evangelical Christendom, as illustrated by belief in the Rapture and the emphasis upon praise and worship. (It can also be seen in the increasing amount of Christian fiction being sold in Christian bookstores.) This is a form of mental alcoholism, because both praise and worship and the Rapture focus upon a realm of divine magic that is free of normal human common sense. I have examined all of the New Testament prophetic passages in the original Greek and have come to the conclusion that there is no biblical support for the Rapture. There is strong biblical support for the idea that we are on the threshold of a major societal transition. But this transition will involve the extending of rational thought to the subjective rather than the abandoning of rational thought for the magical.

Looking at this more carefully, Perceiver thought can be used in two primary ways. The first way is to poke holes in Teacher theories by finding facts that act as counterexamples. For instance, when I started helping my older brother do research in mental symmetry, he would use Teacher thought to come up with theories and I would use Perceiver thought to poke holes in these theories. The theories that survived laid the foundation for mental symmetry. The second way is to use Perceiver thought to find connections of similarity between one area and another. This second method builds Teacher theories rather than tearing them down and it is the method that I currently emphasize. For instance, this essay is describing connections of similarity between Protestantism and communism.

The first method appears to be dominant in rural Russia. Chaos is viewed as normal. People are surrounded by houses that are falling apart, pavement that is crumbling, buildings with peeling painting, and so on. This pervasive chaos has created cultural MMNs of familiarity within the average rural Russian. Encountering Teacher order feels wrong, which leads instinctively to the response of using Perceiver thought to poke holes in this Teacher order. Similarly, Russians feel that rules are meant to be broken. And it feels normal within the Russian mind for Russian goods to lack quality and for projects and material to be ruined through corruption. More generally, this leads to the feeling that life is cheap. That is why serving as cannon fodder in the military is not viewed as horrific. If one wants quality, one buys Western items rather than Russian items. In major centers such as Moscow and St. Petersburg, one finds the appearance of quality. But the primary goal is to create an emotional impression in Mercy thought rather than build lasting Perceiver value and Teacher order.

Similarly, mental chaos is regarded as normal in Protestantism. People are surrounded by personal identities that are falling apart, crumbling ways of life, and peeling public façades. This has created cultural MMNs of familiarity within the average church member. Encountering the Teacher order of rational understanding feels wrong, which leads instinctively to the response of using Perceiver truth to poke holes in rational understanding. Believers look for evidence of God in exceptions to the rule. It feels normal for biblical passages to be loosely interpreted in a manner that does not survive analysis, or for leaders to become morally corrupted. More generally, this leads to the feeling that religious doctrine is cheap. If one wants quality concepts, one looks to secular research and not Protestant writings. There are some centers of academic excellence, but even here the primary goal is to improve the emotional attractiveness of Christianity and Christian doctrine rather than build solid truth and eternal order within which one could live.

The typical Western analyst of Russia uses technical thought to gain a Teacher understanding of Russian society, guided by the implicit assumption that Russian leaders are pursuing plans with technical structure in Teacher order. But Russians do not think like Western analysts. Instead, what matters to Russian leadership is social hierarchy and prestigious appearance. Going the other way, Russian leaders assume that what impresses them will also impress Westerners. But Westerners look beyond appearance to technical details and lasting structure.

Similarly, the secular analyst of Protestant religion uses technical thought to try to understand Protestant belief, guided by the implicit assumption that the goal is to come up with a coherent system of belief. But Protestant believers do not think in terms of coherent understanding. Instead, what matters to Protestant leadership is maintaining the moral hierarchy as well as giving the appearance of Christian success through impressive services and events. Going the other way, Protestant leaders assume that what impresses them will also impress secular thought. But secular thought looks beyond social appearance to intellectual coherence.

Our comparison of communism with Protestantism has focused upon Russia and American evangelicalism, with the former being a physical empire and the latter an internal moral empire. These two systems have traditionally viewed each other as mortal enemies. During the Cold War, Protestant America viewed the communist Soviet Union as the ultimate godless enemy that replaced Christian morality with worship of the Soviet state. Protestant Americans tried to undermine Soviet ideology by smuggling Bibles inthese were theto the Soviet Union. Going the other way, the Soviet Union viewed Bible-believing Christians as enemies of the state who replaced loyalty to Marxism and the state with belief in some invisible God. Soviet communism tried to undermine Christianity by controlling churches, sending Christians to the gulags and forbidding the spread of Christian literature.

Having grown up during the Cold War, I find it incomprehensible that evangelical Christians would continue to support a Donald Trump who loves dictators and wants to be friends with Vladimir Putin. For me, this single factor would be a major red flag—both figuratively and literally—that would cause me to turn away from Donald Trump in moral horror.

However, Russian dictatorship and Trumpism appear to be converging towards a common mindset. On the one side, Putin and Russia are major supporters of Russian Orthodox Christianity, as long as this ‘Christianity’ blesses Russian aggression, imperialism, and weapons and avoids making moral statements about Russian leaders. On the other side, the term ‘evangelical’, which used to mean preaching the good news of the Christian message of salvation by faith, now typically describes being a political conservative who expects the government to impose conservative morality upon American liberalism. Thus, each appears to be entering the territory of the other, causing each to increasingly resonate with the other rather than viewing each other as mortal enemies. On the one hand, Russia has replaced the ideology of Marxism with a direct appeal to traditional religious and cultural MMNs. On the other hand, American evangelicalism no longer regards the kingdom of God as an internal kingdom based upon faith but rather as a physical kingdom based upon political power.

Given such a situation, I am increasingly forced to conclude that the only remaining option is to take the Bible away from evangelical Christendom and give it to another group. Mental symmetry makes it possible to do this, because it studies the Bible using rational cognitive analysis, a form of thinking that the Protestant mindset of blind faith instinctively rejects. And if one views history as being guided by a real God, then maybe that is just what the real God is doing. Consistent with this, every biblical book that I have analyzed from a prophetic perspective places the current era somewhere in the middle of the book—except for the book of James. Interpreting the book of James as a detailed prophecy of Protestantism places the current era at the end of the book, which means that God is now closing the book upon Protestantism.

Chinese Communism

We have looked so far at Russian communism. Chinese communism has followed a different path which has led it to a much different state than the current condition of Russia. In order to compare Chinese communism with Protestantism, we first need to determine the appropriate parallels. This second section will include numerous quotes from Wikipedia and other sources.

Russian communism started with the factory worker who carries out repetitive Server actions guided by the Teacher order of some system of production. Chinese communism started with the Chinese peasant who performed manual labor within the Teacher order of traditional Chinese society.

The Great Leap Forward

Chinese communism was initially shaped by the Great Leap Forward of 1958-62. Wikipedia summarizes, “The Great Leap Forward stemmed from multiple factors, including ‘the purge of intellectuals, the surge of less-educated radicals, the need to find new ways to generate domestic capital, rising enthusiasm about the potential results mass mobilization might produce, and reaction against the sociopolitical results of the Soviet [Union]’s development strategy’... Mao was dismissive of technical experts and basic economic principles, which meant that industrialization of the countryside would solely be dependent on the peasants.” Notice that Mao was suspicious of the Russian method of a party leadership imposing Teacher order upon Soviet workers. Instead, Mao downplayed technical expertise and scientific understanding in order to empower the average Chinese peasant.

A similar mindset can be seen in Pentecostalism. There was a purging of intellectual Christianity accompanied by a surging of less-educated radical Pentecostals. There was rising enthusiasm about the potential results of the masses being mobilized by the baptism of the Holy Spirit as well as a reaction against the ‘Soviet’ form of doctrinal blind faith. And it was expected that God would work through the laity. Quoting from Wikipedia, “The Pentecostal movement, especially in its early stages, was typically associated with the impoverished and marginalized of America, especially African Americans and Southern Whites. With the help of many healing evangelists such as Oral Roberts, Pentecostalism spread across America by the 1950s.”

Looking at this in more detail, Chinese planning was guided by the shape of a central plan without its substance. The central plans of Russian communism were idealistic and unrealistic, but they still had some connection with reality. Chinese communism embraced central plans that had nothing to do with reality. Wikipedia relates, “At the Second Plenary Session of the 8th Central Committee, ‘go all out, aim high, and build socialism with greater, faster, better, and more economical results’ was adopted as the ‘General Line for Socialist Construction’ in China. In 1955, Mao had already expressed his belief that socialist construction should achieve ‘greater, faster, better, and more economical’ results. These led to the re-emergence of ‘rash advances’, which further led to the reintroduction of policies and tendencies that had previously been overturned. Those who opposed Mao’s policies were accused of not upholding the tenets of the ‘class struggle’ under the people’s cult of Mao.” Notice that the shape of a general plan in Teacher thought is present, but the content is missing. Instead, what matters is the emotional fervor of committing in Mercy thought to ‘rash advances’ that will lead to ‘greater, faster, better’ results.

Pentecostal speaking in tongues corresponds cognitively to committing to a central plan that lacks substance. Pentecostalism viewed speaking in tongues as evidence that one was filled with the Holy Spirit. Quoting from Wikipedia, “In 1900, Charles Parham, an American evangelist and faith healer, began teaching that speaking in tongues was the Biblical evidence of Spirit baptism. Along with William J. Seymour, a Wesleyan-Holiness preacher, he taught that this was the third work of grace. The three-year-long Azusa Street Revival, founded and led by Seymour in Los Angeles, California, resulted in the growth of Pentecostalism throughout the United States and the rest of the world.”

Speaking in tongues is discussed in previous essays. In brief, Pentecostal speaking in tongues can be summarized linguistically as the shape of a language without its substance. Quoting from Wikipedia, “In 1972, William J. Samarin, a linguist from the University of Toronto, published a thorough assessment of Pentecostal glossolalia that became a classic work on its linguistic characteristics... Samarin found that glossolalic speech does resemble human language in some respects. The speaker uses accent, rhythm, intonation and pauses to break up the speech into distinct units. Each unit is itself made up of syllables, the syllables being formed from consonants and vowels found in a language known to the speaker... Samarin found that the resemblance to human language was merely on the surface and so concluded that glossolalia is ‘only a facade of language’... Most importantly of all – there was no systematic relationship between units of speech and concepts.” On the one hand, the shape of speech is present in Teacher thought with syllables, consonants, accent, rhythm, and intonation. But on the other hand, there is ‘no systematic relationship between units of speech concepts’—no mental connection between Server sequences of Teacher words and Perceiver meanings. A Communist central plan provides a general framework in Teacher thought for the behavior of the entire country. Similarly, speaking in tongues provides a general framework in Teacher thought for a person’s entire mindset.

Mental symmetry suggests that the path of personal transformation can be divided into three steps: The first step uses personal honesty to construct a rational concept of God in Teacher thought. The second step allows this concept of God in Teacher thought to guide personal behavior through righteousness. The third step then returns to the human realm of Mercy experiences as a transformed individual. A similar three stages can be seen in Methodist theology. (I did not get the three stages of personal transformation from Methodist theology but discovered the correspondence fairly recently.) Quoting from Wikipedia, “Methodism teaches that sanctification has three components—initial, progressive, and entire: We believe that sanctification is that work of the Holy Spirit by which the child of God is separated from sin unto God and is enabled to love God with all the heart and to walk in all His holy commandments blameless. Sanctification is initiated at the moment of justification and regeneration. From that moment there is a gradual or progressive sanctification as the believer walks with God and daily grows in grace and in a more perfect obedience to God. This prepares for the crisis of entire sanctification which is wrought instantaneously when believers present themselves as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God.” Notice that the third step of mental rebirth is preceded by a first step of encountering a concept of God in Teacher thought and a second step of gradually learning how to be guided by this concept of God.

Speaking in tongues replaces the first step of encountering a concept of God in Teacher thought with encountering the concept of a new imaginary language in Teacher thought, and it replaces the second step of following a rational concept of God with ‘speaking’ in this new imaginary language. Faking the first two steps makes it possible to jump directly to the third step of instantaneous baptism of the Holy Spirit. The Pentecostal movement initially recognized the baptism of the Holy Spirit as a third step that followed two previous steps, but this became replaced by the belief that one could jump directly to the third step. Wikipedia describes this transition. “The first Pentecostal converts were mainly derived from the Holiness movement and adhered to a Wesleyan understanding of entire sanctification as a definite, instantaneous experience and second work of grace. Problems with this view arose when large numbers of converts entered the movement from non-Wesleyan backgrounds, especially from Baptist churches. In 1910, William Durham of Chicago first articulated the Finished Work, a doctrine which located sanctification at the moment of salvation and held that after conversion the Christian would progressively grow in grace in a lifelong process. This teaching polarized the Pentecostal movement into two factions: Holiness Pentecostalism and Finished Work Pentecostalism... The Finished Work, however, would ultimately gain ascendancy among Pentecostals, in denominations such as the Assemblies of God, which was the first Finished Work Pentecostal denomination. After 1911, most new Pentecostal denominations would adhere to Finished Work sanctification.”

Similarly, The Great Leap Forward was viewed by Mao as a shortcut to a modern state. Quoting from Wikipedia, “Classical Marxist theory hypothesized a relatively linear progression of development and a worldwide revolution beginning with the most developed countries. At the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, the country was one of the poorest in the world. The Great Leap Forward attempted to defy the conventional understanding of the time required for economic development. Through rapid industrialization, it aimed to close the gap between China’s developmental stage and its political aspirations.” Looking at this in terms of the three stages of personal transformation, Marxism teaches that the third stage of living in a communist state is preceded by a second stage of organized labor performing Server actions within some Teacher structure, which itself is preceded by the first stage of a capitalist society. The assumption is that revolution will ‘begin with the most developed countries’. Chinese communism attempted to skip the first two steps of capitalism and organized labor and jump directly to the third step of a communist state.

Paul talks extensively about speaking in tongues in 1 Corinthians 14. Paul contrasts the personal benefit of speaking in an unknown tongue with the corporate benefit of prophecy as well as the benefits of interpreting a tongue to others. Cognitively speaking, each technical specialization will naturally develop its own technical vocabulary and language. Thus, each theoretical specialization ‘speaks in tongues’ using technical language that is not comprehensible to others outside of this specialization. Such specialized theorizing has emotional and internal benefits, but it can only help others and society if it is translated into language that is comprehensible to others. Using mental symmetry as a meta-theory builds connections of understanding that help to translate between the tongues of various technical specializations. Pentecostal speaking in tongues can act as an inspiration for being guided by the Holy Spirit, but learning to speak the ‘heavenly language’ of a rational meta-theory that integrates Christian theology with scientific thought and technical specializations can provide a far more extensive and effective mental foundation for being guided by the Holy Spirit.

When one is internally guided by a mental map of God and righteous behavior, then one can cooperate as an individual with other individuals who are following the Holy Spirit. What ties everyone together is a similar internal concept of the kingdom of God. When following an integrated rational Teacher understanding is replaced by following the shape of a Teacher understanding, then internally guided cooperation has to be replaced by externally guided cooperation.

Chinese communism physically forced externally guided physical cooperation through communes. Wikipedia summarizes, “At the Politburo meetings in August 1958, it was decided that these people’s communes would become the new form of economic and political organization throughout rural China. By the end of the year, approximately 25,000 communes had been set up, with an average of 5,000 households each.” The Soviet Union also set up communes, but Chinese communes were implemented more suddenly and exerted more control over their members. This sudden, total, imposed cooperation is consistent with the idea of trying to take a shortcut directly to the third step of transformation.

Pentecostalism began with a three-year long revival meeting, which can be described as a mental and emotional commune. Wikipedia summarizes, “Seymour traveled to Los Angeles where his preaching sparked the three-year-long Azusa Street Revival in 1906... Worship at the racially integrated Azusa Mission featured an absence of any order of service. People preached and testified as moved by the Spirit, spoke and sung in tongues, and fell (were slain) in the Spirit. The revival attracted both religious and secular media attention, and thousands of visitors flocked to the mission, carrying the ‘fire’ back to their home churches.” Revival meetings have also been a characteristic of normal Protestantism, but the revival that started Pentecostalism was more sudden, more total, and more emotionally immersive. According to Wikipedia, “Worship at 312 Azusa Street was frequent and spontaneous with services going almost around the clock.” Wikipedia also describes the emotional immersion. “Proud, well-dressed preachers came to ‘investigate’. Soon their high looks were replaced with wonder, then conviction comes, and very often you will find them in a short time wallowing on the dirty floor, asking God to forgive them and make them as little children.”

Summarizing, Chinese communism attempted to skip directly from national impoverishment to a modern developed country by replacing the Teacher structure of an integrated, technological economy with the shape of a central plan in Teacher thought. Similarly, Finished Work Pentecostalism attempted to skip directly from personal impoverishment to a fully transformed mind by replacing the Teacher structure of a rational concept of God with the shape of a heavenly language in Teacher thought.

I do not want to write off the Pentecostal movement totally. From a purely social perspective, Wikipedia observes that “The intermingling of races and the group's encouragement of women in leadership was remarkable, as 1906 was the height of the ‘Jim Crow’ era of racial segregation.” A similar breakdown of social classes happened in Chinese communes. Wikipedia relates, “As more and more families linked together to form people’s communes, peasants started to lose individual identities, since families were from vastly different communities with different cultural views, political views, family structures, and financial backgrounds.” When evaluating difficult periods such as these, it is essential to place them within a cognitive map of personal and societal development—the same kind of moral cognitive map that makes it possible to genuinely follow the Holy Spirit. It is dishonest to use current moral standards and current rational understanding to judge people and groups from the past, because they lacked these moral standards and did not have the rational understanding. Instead, one must ask what choices those people had given the context of their moral standards and their rational understanding. Pentecostalism is examined in much more detail in other essays.

Unfortunately, instead of promoting progress, the Great Leap Forward led to the greatest famine in human history (in absolute numbers). Wikipedia relates, “The Great Leap Forward is estimated to have led to between 15 and 55 million deaths in mainland China during the 1959–1961 Great Chinese Famine it caused, making it the largest or second-largest famine in human history.” Similarly, Pentecostalism led to a massive intellectual famine. One paper summarizes what happened in South Africa. “The beginnings and first half-century of South African Pentecostalism are characterised by a tradition of anti-intellectualism consisting of a rejection of theological training, a critical and negative attitude towards theologians, and criticism of the academic world in general. This led to Pentecostals being seen as outsiders without a theological tradition or any contribution to be made to the theological world, or even any interest in developing and formulating a theological structure that can compare or contrast with other theological structures.” Notice that this intellectual famine extended beyond a questioning of Protestant theology to a general rejection of all of academia, accompanied by a total lack of desire to formulate Pentecostalism in theological terms.

The Cultural Revolution

The unparalleled physical disaster of the great Chinese famine was followed by the Cultural Revolution, begun in 1966 by Chairman Mao.

Before continuing, I want to look briefly at Mao as a person. The Wikipedia page on Mao’s cult of personality summarizes that “The number of Mao’s portraits produced (1.2 billion) exceeded the population of China at the time, in addition to a total of 4.8 billion Chairman Mao badges that were manufactured.” Karl Marx “viewed religion as ‘the soul of soulless conditions’ or the ‘opium of the people’.” The Chinese communist citizens under Mao did not need to import any opium from the British because they grew their own extra-strength ‘religious opium’ to escape the ‘soulless conditions’ of the Great Leap Forward. Unfortunately, Mao was mentally incapable of looking in the moral mirror. Instead, “Techniques were used by the state to elevate Mao Zedong’s status to that of an infallible heroic leader... Mao’s personality cult soared to an unprecedented height, and he took advantage of it to mobilize the masses and attack his political opponents.” Looking at this cognitively, when a leader causes disaster, then acknowledging the facts will lead to unbearable guilt. The only way for the leader to escape these feelings of guilt is to continue to use personal status to insist that he is right. This also describes the mindset of Donald Trump.

Mao encouraged Chinese youth to rebel against existing authority and structure. Wikipedia explains that the goal was to “destroy the Four Olds (old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits), which often took the form of destroying historical artifacts and cultural and religious sites. Tens of millions were persecuted, including senior officials such as Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping and Peng Dehuai; millions were persecuted for being members of the Five Black Categories, with intellectuals and scientists labelled as the Stinking Old Ninth. ” Summarizing, existing Teacher order was destroyed in the name of revolution.

A similar attacking of existing Teacher governmental structure can be seen in the 1950s Latter Rain Movement of Pentecostalism. One website summarizes, “There was a strong anti-denominational stance as they believed that a locally autonomous, apostolically overseen and elder-led congregation was far nearer the New Testament pattern than centrally controlled denominations.” Wikipedia explains that the movement “emphasized the independence of the local church and opposed complex denominational structures... The Latter Rain strongly emphasized relational networks over denominational structures.”

The Cultural Revolution attempted to reinvigorate China with revolutionary fervor. Quoting from Wikipedia, “Mao contended that capitalist tendencies had begun to grow in China.  He viewed the Cultural Revolution as perpetual revolution aimed at opposing ‘representatives of the bourgeoisie and counterrevolutionary revisionists’ who had ‘sneaked into the party, the government, the army, and cultural circles.’”

Similarly, the Latter Rain movement attempted to prevent Pentecostalism from slipping back into the ‘old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits’ of traditional Protestantism. Wikipedia explains, “Latter Rain proponents viewed themselves as a continuation of classical Pentecostalism and continued many Pentecostal teachings and practices. Latter Rain leaders viewed Pentecostalism as spiritually dry in the post-war period and in danger of slipping into a dry or mental formalism like many of their evangelical peers. Latter Rain leaders developed new doctrines and practices to address the developing formalism with Pentecostalism.”

The Chinese Cultural Revolution was initially spread by Red Guards, semi-independent armies of Chinese youth encouraged by Mao. Wikipedia summarizes, “Despite meeting with resistance early on, the Red Guards received personal support from Mao, and the movement rapidly grew. The movement in Beijing culminated during the Red August of 1966, which later spread to other areas in mainland China. Mao made use of the group as propaganda and to accomplish goals such as seizing power and destroying symbols of China’s pre-communist past, including ancient artifacts and gravesites of notable Chinese figures. Moreover, the government was very permissive of the Red Guards, and even allowed the Red Guards to inflict bodily harm on people viewed as dissidents.”

There was a similar focus upon empowered armies of youth in the Latter Rain movement. Wikipedia states, “A major feature of Latter Rain teaching focused on the ‘manifestation of the Sons of God’ or ‘Joel’s Army’. The Latter Rain movement leaders taught that as the end of the age approached, the manifested sons of God would appear in the church. They would be empowered with supernatural gifts and able to perform miracles comparable to the miracles ascribed to Jesus Christ in the New Testament.”

The Red Guards believed that existing schools had become corrupt and they spread their revolutionary views through an independent press. Wikipedia explains, “During the early period of the Cultural Revolution, independent publications by mass political organizations such as Red Guards grew, reaching an estimated number as high as 10,000. Publications were not uniform in style or form and ranged from mimeographed tabloids to newspapers printed with professional metal type in broadsheet format.”

Similarly, the Latter Rain movement emphasized the five-fold ministry in which many Christians would be empowered to replace the existing corrupt church. Wikipedia explains, “Leaders of the movement taught that the Christian Church must restore and equip a ‘five-fold ministry’ which included modern-day apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Then, while appointing key individuals to these roles, the movement presented the idea that mainstream Christianity had become apostate and needed purging.”

The Red Guards were eventually suppressed in order to restore order to Chinese society. Wikipedia relates, “By February 1967, political opinion at the center had decided on the removal of the Red Guards from the Cultural Revolution scene in the interest of stability. The PLA forcibly suppressed the more radical Red Guard groups... The final remnants of the movement were defeated in Beijing in the summer of 1968. Allegedly, Mao had an audience with the Red Guard leaders, during which the chairman informed them of himself being directly responsible for the orders to suppress them, in favor of the military’s administration.”

Similarly, the Latter Rain movement was ultimately suppressed by existing Pentecostal church leadership. Quoting from Biblehub, “Traditional Pentecostal denominations, such as the Assemblies of God, issued warnings in the 1950s, concluding that the Latter Rain emphasis on modern apostles and prophets could challenge pastoral leadership, biblical authority, and denominational structures.” Wikipedia adds, “Some Pentecostal denominational leadership began to openly oppose the revival in the spring of 1948, and questioned the teachings and practices being developed by the movement. As the revival progressed, their condemnations became more pronounced. According to one author, ‘leaders of the Assemblies of God watched in horror’ as the Latter Rain movement began to grant ministering licenses to unqualified preachers and viewed some of their teachings as divisive and harmful.” Notice the focus upon restoring church order as well as replacing ‘unqualified preachers’ with officially appointed leadership.

The Chinese Cultural Revolution was characterized by struggle sessions. Wikipedia explains, “Struggle sessions were usually conducted at the workplace, classrooms and auditoriums, where ‘students were pitted against their teachers, friends and spouses were pressured to betray one another, [and] children were manipulated into exposing their parents’, causing a breakdown in interpersonal relationships and social trust... The denunciation of prominent ‘class enemies’ was often conducted in public squares and marked by large crowds of people who surrounded the kneeling victim, raised their fists, and shouted accusations of misdeeds.” Notice how revolutionary fervor is being transmitted through formative experiences carried out by average people on their fellows.

These same factors characterized the Latter Rain Movement. “Unlike mainstream Pentecostalism, which holds that the baptism of the Holy Spirit usually comes after prolonged ‘tarrying’ or waiting for the Spirit, the Latter Rain movement taught that the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Holy Spirit can be imparted on one believer by another through the ‘laying on of hands’.” Notice how the revolutionary fervor of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is being transmitted through formative experiences carried out by average people on their fellows.

It may seem blasphemous to compare the Chinese Cultural Revolution with a move of the Holy Spirit. But what really qualifies as blasphemy of the Holy Spirit depends upon the nature of God and the Holy Spirit. If the God of Christianity is a God of the Gaps who violates the Teacher order of the universe by intervening supernaturally, then it is blasphemy to compare the Chinese Cultural Revolution with the Latter Rain movement. But if that is the case, then who created the universe? And who is the real God? The Christian God of the Gaps who violates natural order or the God who created the Teacher order of the universe? In contrast, if the real God is a God of Teacher order who created the universe, then it is movements such as the Latter Rain that are committing the blasphemy.

This raises deep theological questions that need to be discussed. Therefore, we will take the next pages to examine the relationship between God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Some of the material in this next section is new and has not been mentioned before.

The Holy Spirit

(This discussion of the Holy Spirit is expanded in a section that has been added to a previous essay on the Trinity.)

Mental symmetry suggests that a concept of the Holy Spirit is related to Plato’s concept of the Form of the Good. Plato said that the Form of the Good integrates all other Platonic forms. Teacher theories describe the simplified essence of situations or contexts, and a Platonic Form is an imaginary idealized image that forms within Mercy thought as a result of this Teacher understanding. Going further, an integrated Teacher understanding will have the indirect result of tying together Platonic forms within Mercy thought, leading to a Form of the Good. The Form of the Good is a mental concept of God, because it is a universal image that extends beyond specific experiences. But it is also a derived concept of God that emerges within Mercy thought as a result of an integrated concept of God in Teacher thought. Stated theologically, the Holy Spirit is God but the Holy Spirit is also the third person of the Trinity.

Holy means to be different or separate. A concept of God the Spirit can become holy in two primary ways. Suppose that one studies the Bible as the source of absolute truth. This will lead to the concept of a Holy Spirit, but this internal concept of divine perfection will have nothing to do with normal human life because it comes from studying a book that is regarded as special and different from normal life. The result will be the mental concept of a heaven of divine perfection that is totally unrelated to normal earth, and following the Holy Spirit will be interpreted as turning one’s back upon the thinking and experiences of normal life in order to be motivated fully by this imaginary heavenly reality of biblical truth. Being anti-intellectual and anti-tradition will be regarded as a prerequisite for following the Holy Spirit, as illustrated by Pentecostalism.

Now suppose that one studies the Bible as an accurate description of universal truth. This will also lead to the concept of a Holy Spirit, but this internal concept of divine perfection will be viewed as an idealization of existing normal human life because it comes from studying universal principles that apply to normal life. Following the Holy Spirit will then be interpreted as focusing upon the essentials of mental and societal wholeness without getting distracted by details and non-essentials. Instead of suppressing tradition and denying rational thought, one will attempt to learn from tradition and integrate rational thought.

Looking at this conflict from a historical perspective, suppose that the Bible is viewed as the source of absolute truth. On the one hand, the Bible contains accurate principles of cognitive development. Thus, following biblical principles will develop a mind that is capable of understanding the natural world and building a better society. But blind faith and absolute truth can only survive as long as the source of truth is regarded as far more important than personal identity. However, both gaining rational understanding about the world in Teacher thought as well as achieving personal success in Mercy thought will raise the emotional status of personal identity relative to the source of absolute truth. Therefore, those who apply biblical principles will naturally be driven to belittle and reject biblical principles. This typically happens over several generations.

The end result is a struggle between two concepts of God: On the one side is the God who created the Teacher order of the physical universe while on the other side is a God of the gaps who intervenes to create supernatural exceptions to the laws of Nature. The concept of a God of miracles naturally emerges from viewing the Bible as the source of absolute truth, because the Bible contains many stories about God intervening supernaturally in human society through miracles. Following the Holy Spirit will then be equated with living within experiences that express a God of the gaps. Focusing in Mercy thought upon following a Holy Spirit of miracles and supernatural gifts makes it possible to sidestep the inherent Teacher contradiction of following a God of the Gaps. This explains why Pentecostalism naturally ignores theology. However, following a Holy Spirit of miracles in this manner will naturally corrode common sense as well as the ability to study the Bible rationally.

A more common and less mentally corrosive approach is to follow a God of synchronicity. One still views the God of the Bible as different than the God of Nature. However, the God of the Bible is no longer viewed as someone who violates natural law but rather as someone who arranges random events in a manner that reflects Teacher order. For instance, instead of praying for God to supernaturally heal some person, the prayer will be that God will guide the hands of the surgeon or protect the patient from complications. Praying for synchronicity preserves common sense and rational thought, and it also views the God of the Bible as a God of Teacher order, avoiding the inherent contradiction of a God who violates Teacher order. However, it also leads to the concept of a Christian God who is only capable of making the best of the existing situation. Going further, a God of synchronicity does not tend to lead to the concept of a Holy Spirit who functions independently of God the Father.

Treating the Bible as an accurate description of universal cognitive truth leads to a different concept of miracles. Biblical stories of miracles are not viewed as exceptions to natural law but rather as expressions of the Teacher order of deeper cognitive principles. They may violate natural law, but they make cognitive, symbolic, and spiritual sense, and they fit within the larger Teacher order of leading people and societies to greater mental and societal wholeness. More generally, miracles are then viewed as the work of God the Holy Spirit who functions independently of God the Father. However, consistent with Plato’s idea of a Form of the Good, the Holy Spirit is also viewed as the Spirit of Truth who comes from the Father, who does not speak of himself but rather leads into all truth, as described in John 14-16. Saying this cognitively, the Holy Spirit is based upon Platonic forms of ideal perfection that come from Teacher understanding, and the Holy Spirit behaves in a manner that leads to greater Teacher order, simplicity, and perfection. But the Holy Spirit can take paths that temporarily violate the laws of Nature, guided by fundamental principles of how mental networks function. However, these paths will be taken in a way that minimizes any obvious violations of the laws of Nature.

A similar kind of behavior can be seen in physics with virtual particles. Virtual particles only exist temporarily and there is no direct evidence of their existence. However, they can be described mathematically and they can also temporarily violate the laws of physics. One example is quantum tunneling, in which a particle ‘teleports’ from one side of a barrier to another. Quantum tunneling can be viewed as a temporary violation of the laws of nature, and it can also be viewed as a particle turning into a wave and then reforming as a particle on the other side of the barrier—which could be interpreted cognitively as temporarily moving from the human realm of particles to the angelic realm of waves. In each case, the particle is performing a movement that classical mechanics says is impossible. Safely making such a temporary transformation from particle to wave requires a concept of the Holy Spirit who can guarantee a safe return to the human realm of particles and objects. This analogy from physics itself provides a theoretical covering for miracles, because it presents a miracle as analogically similar to some aspect of the laws of Nature as opposed to violating the laws of Nature.

There is both a cognitive and a physical aspect to such a concept of the Holy Spirit. Cognitively speaking, a concept of the Holy Spirit that emerges from Teacher idealizations of existing reality will naturally function in a manner that respects, restores, and enhances Teacher order. Looking at this distinction more carefully, a concept of God the Father is based in Teacher thought which thinks in terms of general processes and sequences. These general processes can be performed in many different specific Server ways and result in many different Mercy goals, but the general sequence must always be followed in a righteous manner. A concept of God the Holy Spirit, in contrast, is based in Mercy thought which thinks in terms of objects, people, and events. Thus, what matters is moving from the existing state to another state that is more righteous. The path between these two states is of secondary importance. The inherent Teacher order of the Holy Spirit provides an emotional covering for the fact that the Holy Spirit may take paths the temporarily violate Teacher order. Using an analogy, this is like bringing my car to a mechanic to fix. I may not know exactly how the mechanic will fix the car, but I know that the mechanic is an expert and I also know that the car will be fixed.

A similar kind of cognitive covering occurs with justification from sin, which is also based in a cognitive distinction between Teacher and Mercy thought. Mercy thought views Server sequences as being composed of individual steps that one takes sequentially through time. Teacher thought, in contrast, views the same Server sequences as fundamental building blocks for thought outside of time. This distinction can be seen between the mathematical laws of nature that function outside of time and the physical expressions of natural law that function within the arrow of time.

The Christian doctrine of justification by faith can be interpreted cognitively using the school analogy. Suppose that a student enrolls in school. From a Teacher perspective, the student has moved from the domain of being uneducated to the domain of being educated. The student who has just enrolled is still ignorant, but is now viewed by Teacher thought as belonging to the Server sequence of being educated, because Teacher thought views Server sequences as fundamental building blocks that function outside of time. However, the student views this same Server sequence from a Mercy perspective as a step-by-step process of taking and passing one class after another within time.

Similarly, Teacher thought views a miracle of the Holy Spirit as a person whose character embodies Teacher order behaving in a way that leads to greater Teacher order. The cognitive covering comes from the fact that Teacher thought thinks in terms of generalities and overlooks the precise manner in which this greater Teacher order is reached. However, a human being living within specific Mercy experiences notices that the path to a state of greater Teacher order temporarily violates the laws of Nature and concludes that a miracle has happened.

This type of thinking is only possible if one recognizes that universal Teacher laws have to be embodied in some manner. This is similar to the requirement for righteousness. Righteousness is defined as performing Server actions that are emotionally guided by the TMN of a concept of God. This obviously requires the concept of God who behaves. A God who is static or a God who transcends human activity is incapable of guiding human behavior in a righteous manner. Similarly, a God of Teacher order can only view personal character as a covering for miracles if the Teacher order of God is embodied in some manner in personal character. This requirement for embodiment is discussed elsewhere in an essay on the Trinity.

The general principle is that creation can only continue to exist independently of God the Father in Teacher thought if God creates independent beings in Mercy thought who then choose to behave in a manner that reflects the Teacher order of God the Father. The fundamental problem with mysticism is that it attempts to return back to the primal state of God the Father before creation rather than move forward to the righteous state of reflecting the character of God the Father. A similar principle can be seen in protein folding. Biological tissue starts as strings of amino acids that are transcribed from DNA messages. These strings then fold in on themselves to form biological matter. This is not an analogy but rather an actual description. Stated cognitively, the Mercy substance of biological tissue comes directly from the Teacher messages of DNA. If biological tissue is heated too much, then these strings of amino acids unfold through a process known as denaturation, which results in biological death. Mysticism is a cognitive form of denaturation, in which one deconstructs the facts and functions of human existence in order to return to the Teacher overgeneralization of a formless God. The ultimate guarantee of continued created existence is the Holy Spirit, who, according to the Nicene Creed, proceeded from God the Father before creation.

Stated simply, miracles may temporarily violate the laws of nature, but miracles from the Holy Spirit reinforce the universal law of existence which as far as I can tell is the most fundamental law of creation. A miracle is an example of God the Holy Spirit functioning in a manner that is independent of God the Father, but a miracle from God the Holy Spirit will not be random but rather will preserve and extends the Teacher order of God the Father.

A concept of the Holy Spirit that is based in Platonic idealizations of reality may take shortcuts from one location to another as illustrated by a particle teleporting across some barrier through quantum tunneling. That is because Mercy thought does not think in terms of path. But the goal of this ‘teleporting’ will be to increase Teacher order and the teleporting will occur in a manner that minimizes any obvious violations of Teacher order. Such a concept of the Holy Spirit can be given freedom to violate the general sequences of Teacher order because the character of the Holy Spirit guarantees that these violations will be temporary and will lead to greater Teacher order. Saying this another way, the Holy Spirit can be trusted to violate the letter of the law because the character of the Holy Spirit guarantees that the spirit of the law will be followed.

Going further, a righteous person is capable of being empowered by the Holy Spirit to perform miracles without becoming mentally corrupted, because TMNs of righteousness will ensure that any violations of Teacher order will be temporary. Going still further, there is a state beyond righteousness in which one continues to behave in a righteous manner because that defines the only possible mode of existence. This type of mental network of existence emerges when the only option that remains is to love what is good. Cognitive theory suggests that the individual who loves goodness and righteousness at this level of existence is capable of remaining empowered by the Holy Spirit.

The theory of mental symmetry acquired its name from the extensive symmetries that were observed between Teacher and Mercy thought and between Perceiver and Server thought. Mental symmetry also provides a rational understanding of the biblical description of a Trinitarian God. This description contains two different facets. On the one hand, a concept of the Holy Spirit emerges within Mercy thought as a result of a meta-theory in Teacher thought. This is asymmetrical with Teacher thought coming before Mercy thought. But on the other hand, the concept of the Holy Spirit that emerges functions in a way that is symmetrical to a concept of God the Father in Teacher thought. Teacher thought loves symmetries because they exhibit extensive order-within-complexity. This leads to the apparent contradiction within the Nicene Creed which states that God the Spirit proceeds from God the Father but God the Spirit is also fully God. What happens cognitively is that a concept of God the Father develops first, this leads to a concept of God the Holy Spirit, and it then becomes increasingly apparent that these two function in a symmetrical manner.

This symmetry has two major emotional effects: First, instead of viewing miracles merely as something that the Holy Spirit does which secretly and temporarily violates universal Teacher laws, miracles are viewed as behavior that is related by symmetry to the ordered behavior of God the Father through a sort of ‘mirror-image’ order. Second, the combination of God the Father and God the Holy Spirit creates the mental concept of a larger integrated God of which God the Father and God the Holy Spirit are members. This changes God the Father from being the source and legislator of everything in Teacher thought to being a ‘fellow citizen’ of the Trinity. This is extremely significant, because it solves the apostle problem. Posed briefly, how does a legislator enjoy the fruit of his or her legislation? The answer is that others have to apply the legislation and then the legislator has to enter into this application as a fellow citizen. God the Father as the ‘legislator’ of creation faces this problem at its most basic level. Viewing God the Holy Spirit as the mirror image of God the Father makes it possible for God the father to enjoy creation.

I am not suggesting that there is some other God apart from the Trinitarian God. Instead, I think what happens is that created beings form a mental concept of a symmetrical God, they act as if God is symmetrical, and this corporate action by created beings makes it possible for the real Trinitarian God to function in a symmetrical manner rather than as God the Father being the legislator/creator who imposes everything upon everyone and everything. Consistent with this idea, I noticed when going through the book of Hebrews that there seems to be a transition where God turns over the functioning of the universe to created beings. I describe this elsewhere as a shifting from matter-over-mind to mind-over-matter.

All of these cognitive ‘covering’ mechanisms for miracles that have been described are significant because constructing an adequate mental concept of a Trinitarian God is a lifelong process. The expert mechanic analogy describes a cognitive mechanism that is incomplete but can also function at the beginning of this process. Divine symmetry is a more effective cognitive mechanism but it also takes much longer to construct.

This look at the Holy Spirit has focused upon the emotional interaction between God the Father and God the Holy Spirit and has not discussed the role played by Incarnation. The interaction between Christ and God the Father has been analyzed elsewhere as an interaction between abstract technical thought and a Teacher meta-theory. The interaction between Jesus and individual humans has been analyzed as an interaction between concrete technical thought and Mercy identity. The general assumption in those discussions is that Teacher thought deals with universality and Mercy thought with specifics. A concept of the Holy Spirit, in contrast, is a concept of universality within Mercy thought. Instead of viewing humans as specific collections of experiences in Mercy thought, humans become treated as individuals with specific names in Teacher thought, a concept that is mentioned several times in the Bible.

Returning now to the comparison of Chinese communism with Pentecostalism, it is easy to see that the Chinese Cultural Revolution was deeply destructive, because physical destruction can be seen and science and technology have taught us that the physical world is ruled by rational thought. In contrast, it may seem unjustified to associate the Latter Rain movement and its emphasis upon the baptism of the Holy Spirit with deep mental and spiritual destruction. However, this destructiveness emerges over time as the limitations of building a concept of the Holy Spirit upon absolute truth become increasingly apparent.

Looking at this further, there is a direct connection between the Latter Rain Movement and current Christian support of Donald Trump. This connection is through the New Apostolic Reformation. Wikipedia explains, “The NAR has been described as taking the restorationism, dominionism, and ‘end-times revival’ focus of the Latter Rain movement – thought to lead to a new Christian influence on the world – and the authoritarian nature of the Shepherding movement.” And a 2024 news article was entitled “New Apostolic Reformation evangelicals see Trump as God’s warrior in their battle to win America from satanic forces and Christianize it.” The article adds that “Central to NAR is the belief that Christian religious leaders should be the main source of cultural and political authority in America... By doing so, NAR proponents believe they can establish a pure and true form of what they believe is a society ruled by divine guidance and strict adherence to biblical ideas.” Notice that holiness is being viewed as using Christian leaders to impose the absolute truth of the Bible upon American society and behavior, and the focus upon authority in Mercy thought means that the path by which this is reached will be ignored. Stated bluntly, the end will be used to justify the means.

Mental symmetry also advocates a form of Dominion theology, but with several very crucial differences. First, mental symmetry constructs a mental concept of the Holy Spirit upon universal cognitive principles that are described in the Bible which can also be found in secular research. The NAR, in contrast, constructs a concept of the Holy Spirit upon the absolute truth of the Bible rather than upon secular research. Second, the goal of mental symmetry is to help people to rationally understand the inescapable moral consequences that they are already experiencing as a result of violating universal cognitive principles. In contrast, the goal of the NAR is to use political force to impose consequences upon nonbelievers. Third, mental symmetry emphasizes the need to be guided by TMNs of righteousness. The NAR, in contrast, thinks that the end justifies the means. Fourth, mental symmetry believes that the ultimate way to change secular society is for individuals to follow cognitive principles to the extent of breaking through to the spiritual realm in a new and more powerful manner. This is primarily an internal, individual, private struggle requiring personal transformation. In contrast, the NAR views this primarily as an external, corporate, political struggle that does not require personal transformation. Thus, mental symmetry recognizes that God might use Donald Trump as a kind of modern day ‘pharoah’ whose ‘hardened heart’ is forcing individuals to fully follow the path of personal transformation so that they can leave the current ‘Egypt’ of materialistic consumerism, but mental symmetry regards the idea that Trump is ‘a chosen vessel of God’ as ‘blasphemy against the Holy Spirit’, because it utterly violates the very idea of a Holy Spirit who based in universal principles of moral cause-and-effect.

Deng’s Chinese Reforms

That brings us finally to the third attempts by Chinese communism and by Pentecostalism. In both cases these third attempts were more successful than the first two. China’s third attempt occurred under Deng Xiaoping while the third attempt of Pentecostalism is known as the charismatic movement. (Technically speaking, the neo-charismatic movement that followed the charismatic movement is known as the third wave.) Deng came to power after Mao died in 1976. Wikipedia describes the success of his reforms. “The reforms led to significant economic growth for China within the successive decades; this phenomenon has since been seen as an ‘economic miracle’. In 2010, China overtook Japan as the world’s second-largest economy by nominal GDP, before overtaking the United States in 2016 as the world’s largest economy by GDP.”

Wikipedia explains the method used by Deng. “Generally, reforms in this period started with local experiments that were adopted and expanded elsewhere once their success had been demonstrated.  Officials generally faced few penalties for experimenting and failing and those who developed successful programs received nation-wide praise and recognition.  The bottom-up approach of the reforms promoted by Deng, in contrast to the top-down approach of the Perestroika in the Soviet Union, is considered an important factor contributing to the success of China’s economic transition.” This describes the three-stage path of transformation being followed at a local level. The first step is personal honesty, because ‘officials generally faced few penalties for experimenting and failing’. This is quite different than in the Great Leap Forward where “Local leaders were pressured into falsely reporting ever-higher grain production figures to their political superiors. Participants at political meetings remembered production figures being inflated up to 10 times their actual production amounts as the race to please superiors and win plaudits.” Second, Teacher theories are supported by Server actions by ‘starting with local experiments’. This is then followed by the third step of being ‘adopted and expanded elsewhere’.

In contrast, the Great Leap Forward took a great leap forward into untested national programs. Wikipedia describes, “Mao announced the goal of surpassing the steel production output of Great Britain by 1968. Giant cooperatives, otherwise known as people’s communes, were formed. Within a year almost all Chinese villages had been reformed into working communes of several thousand people in size, where people would live and work together as envisioned by an ideal communist society. Rather than build steel mills, small ‘backyard furnaces’ would be used.” Notice how Mao is fixating upon some simple verbal theory in Teacher thought (surpassing the steel production of Great Britain) and then immediately imposing untested procedures (backyard furnaces) upon the entire country in a way that eliminates individuality in Mercy thought (people’s communes).

Similar characteristics of localized experimentation can be seen in the charismatic movement of the 1960s and 70s. The charismatic movement was primarily a bottom-up movement in which new practices were introduced to existing churches and denominations. Wikipedia explains, “Before 1955 the religious mainstream did not embrace Pentecostal doctrines. If a church member or clergyman openly expressed such views, they would separate from their existing denomination... The charismatic movement represented a reversal of the previous pattern, as those influenced by Pentecostal spirituality chose to remain in their original denominations.”

This local focus can also be seen in the emphasis upon spiritual gifts rather than speaking in tongues. Wikipedia summarizes, “Charismatics are defined as Christians who share with Pentecostals an emphasis on the gifts of the Spirit but who remain a part of a mainline church. Also, charismatics are more likely than Pentecostals to believe that glossolalia – speaking in tongues – is not a necessary evidence of Spirit baptism.” Speaking in tongues means committing mentally to a totally new ‘language’ of thinking in Teacher thought. Practicing a spiritual gift, in contrast, is typically interpreted as being enabled by God to carry out some specific function in some specific area.

Looking further at the concept of spiritual gifts, the standard Pentecostal interpretation is to view a spiritual gift as something supernatural, such as healing or prophecy. For instance, Wikipedia defines a spiritual gift as “An extraordinary power given by the Holy Spirit. These are believed by followers to be supernatural graces that individual Christians need to fulfill the mission of the Church.” Notice that ‘extraordinary powers’ are being performed ‘supernaturally’ within the ‘church’. In other words, a concept of the Holy Spirit that comes from viewing the Bible as a special book is enabling people to behave in a special way within the special environment of the church. A major breakthrough of the charismatic movement was recognizing the list of spiritual gifts in Romans 12 as natural cognitive styles rather than supernatural Christian abilities. A cognitive style is an example of universal truth because it describes the thinking of everyone and does not just apply to Christians performing church behavior within a church environment.

Many websites still treat Romans 12 spiritual gifts as Christian abilities carried out within a church environment. For instance, gotquestions.org provides the following explanations. “To prophesy is to declare the divine will, to interpret the purposes of God... [Teaching] involves the analysis and proclamation of the Word of God... [Exhortation] is evident in those who consistently call upon others to heed and follow God’s truth... The gifted leader is one who rules, presides over, or has the management of other people in the church.” Looking at this more carefully, there are two cognitive shifts, and websites such as these are only making one of the two shifts. The first shift is from supernatural to natural. The Pentecostal viewpoint treats a spiritual gift as a supernatural ability to carry out supernatural tasks. In contrast, the website being quoted describes Romans 12 spiritual gifts as natural abilities such as analyzing, proclaiming, management, and calling upon others. Thus, a shift is being made from supernatural to natural. The second shift is from absolute truth to universal truth. A mindset of absolute truth views the Bible as a special book with special truth that is applied within a special environment. The website being quoted illustrates this mindset of absolute truth because Romans 12 spiritual gifts are being applied by special Christian people within the special environment of the church. This is usually combined with the view that one receives a Romans 12 spiritual gift when becoming a Christian. I have tried over the years to interact with some of these websites and have found that my research on Romans 12 spiritual gifts means nothing. That is because a mindset of absolute truth is convinced that it already possesses all significant truth and does not need to learn from anyone else. In contrast, mental symmetry treats Romans 12 spiritual gifts as universal cognitive styles acquired by everyone at birth.

This struggle between absolute truth and universal truth is illustrated by my older brother’s Lane’s experience. Lane learned about Romans 12 spiritual gifts from the charismatic movement in the 1970s. Lane then took the unprecedented step of studying 200 secular biographies in order to learn more about spiritual gifts, guided by the assumption that everyone has a spiritual gift and not just Christian people, as well as the assumption that this spiritual gift guides all of a person’s behavior and not just what they do and say within a church setting. Lane interacted briefly with Bill Gothard on spiritual gifts in about 1980 because Gothard taught Romans 12 spiritual gifts as part of his advanced seminar. Quoting from the linked webpage, “The gifts mentioned here are seven motivational spiritual gifts. Each Christian receives one at the time of salvation, and it is the tool through which God works in him or her to see needs and to do something to meet them. These gifts equip believers to take a vital role in the Church.” Notice that these are described as natural gifts received by Christians to function within the church, consistent with a mindset of absolute truth. In contrast, Lane’s analysis of biographies was guided by the assumption that Romans 12 spiritual gifts describe natural abilities acquired by everyone at birth. Lane’s interaction with Gothard stopped after several months because Gothard did not approve of Lane’s ‘secular research’. (I have a computer printout of a proposal from Bill Gothard’s organization to print a version of Lane’s book for their organization. Most of the changes mentioned in the printout involve removing any references to me assisting Lane.) I have attempted to analyze Gothard’s work in another essay. In brief, Gothard tried to build a meta-theory of education and behavior upon Romans 12 spiritual gifts while holding strongly to a mindset of absolute truth rooted in the Bible. The end result was a personality cult rooted in the Mercy status of Bill Gothard as the esteemed interpreter of biblical truth.

However, it appears that Gothard has attempted to follow the three stages of personal transformation—within the constraints of absolute truth. This constraint can be seen in what Gothard refers to as the missing key. “We do this by quoting key verses to God while going to sleep! During the night, the verses go from our head brain down to our gut brain and then teach our heart brain wisdom, understanding, direction and solutions. God guarantees true success if we do this EVERY NIGHT!” Notice the focus upon memorizing Bible passages as the source of absolute truth. However, Gothard claims that he is teaching universal cognitive principles, consistent with the first stage of personal transformation. “The seminar gives practical steps of action to apply seven universal, non-optional principles of life. They transcend all cultures, nationalities, religions, and political systems. I learned these principles by meditating on Scripture.” On the one hand, these are ‘universal’ principles that ‘transcend all cultures’. But on the other hand, they are based in the Bible as the source of absolute truth. Consistent with the second step of applying understanding, Gothard taught week-long practical seminars to millions of listeners, instructing them how to apply these universal principles in daily life. Finally, consistent with the third step, Gothard developed an entire system of education, known as Advanced Training Institute in order to immerse children and families in his universal principles. Unfortunately, Gothard’s juxtaposition of universal principles based upon absolute truth created such a toxic environment that an entire website is devoted to children who were raised in this system attempting to recover from their upbringing.

Gothard did not advocate speaking in tongues or the exercise of supernatural spiritual gifts. Thus, he was not explicitly Pentecostal. Instead, Gothard replaced speaking in tongues with following his Teacher theory of universal principles of life, and he replaced supernatural spiritual gifts with the natural spiritual gifts of Romans 12. This was done within existing church structures. If one looks at worship style, then Gothard was not part of the charismatic renewal. But if one thinks in terms of the focus and treatment of spiritual gifts, then Gothard could be considered as part of the charismatic renewal. The other primary Christian source of Romans 12 spiritual gifts is Don and Katie Fortune, who were explicitly charismatic. They taught Romans 12 spiritual gifts as cognitive styles acquired at birth and gave thousands of seminars over thirty years. Their book on Romans 12 spiritual gifts has sold over 300,000 copies and was revised in 2009.

The neo-charismatic church also applies the three stages of personal transformation, but living within the kingdom of God has typically been redefined as being a contributing member of a church that creates the feeling of living within the kingdom of God. The first stage of using personal honesty to construct a universal concept of God in Teacher thought has been replaced by using factual honesty to construct a Teacher understanding of a Protestant church that has a more universal appeal. The second step of following a Teacher concept of God in righteousness has been replaced by applying this understanding in order to create a more universally appealing churchianity. And the third stage of living within this reborn identity has been replaced by the mega-church that fills the week of the church member with a variety of social and educational programs performed within the umbrella of a universally appealing churchianity. This is a more universal formulation of Protestant Christianity but it also maintains the absolute truth of associating Christianity with special people, special rituals, special places, special events, and special books.

It was suggested earlier that a mental map of righteousness provides an internal landscape within which the Holy Spirit can function. The neo-charismatic movement replaces this mental map with a physical map of spirituality. Quoting from Wikipedia, “Wagner also popularized the concept of territorial spirits, in which demons are believed to rule over geographical locations. George Otis Junior is one of the originators of ‘spiritual mapping,’ which is a practice among some third wave adherents that includes uncovering the histories of buildings and geographical locations to understand how those histories might be contributing to demonic possession in the present.”

Returning to Chinese communism, a major characteristic of Deng’s reforms was his willingness to learn from the success of non-communist countries. Wikipedia explains, “The achievements of Lee Kuan Yew to create an economic success in Singapore had a profound effect on the CCP leadership in China. Leaders in China made a major effort, especially under Deng Xiaoping, to emulate his policies of economic growth, entrepreneurship, and subtle suppression of dissent. Over the years, more than 22,000 Chinese officials were sent to Singapore to study its methods.” Notice that Deng is observing the economic success of the non-Communist country of Singapore and sending thousands of communist officials to study the methods of Singapore.

Deng described this juxtaposition of capitalism and communism as Socialism with Chinese characteristics. Wikipedia explains, “The term was first established by Deng Xiaoping in 1982 and was largely associated with Deng’s overall program of adopting elements of market economics as a means to foster growth using foreign direct investment and to increase productivity while the CCP retained both its formal commitment to achieve communism and its monopoly on political power.” In other words, a capitalist economy is being combined with a communist government. Stated more carefully, people are being given freedom in the peripheral, objective realm of objects, gadgets, and money, while still being governed by communism in the core emotional region of ideology, government, morality, and personal identity. Stated simply, communism withdrew from the less emotional realm of economics.

A similar juxtaposition of popular culture and Christianity emerged in charismatic Christianity. This can be seen, for instance, in the emergence of contemporary worship music, which combines Christian words in Teacher thought with secular styles of music in Mercy thought. (Contemporary worship music (CWM) is a sub genre of contemporary Christian music.) Wikipedia explains, “Some Christians felt that the church needed to break from its stereotype as structured, formal, and dull to appeal to the younger generation. By adopting the conventions of popular music—the antithesis of this stereotype—the church rearticulated the message of the Bible through Christian lyrics, thereby conveying that Christianity was neither outdated nor irrelevant.” Wikipedia also mentions the connection with the charismatic movement. “As CWM is closely associated with the charismatic movement, its lyrics and even some musical features reflect that theology. In particular, the charismatic movement is characterised by its emphasis on the Holy Spirit, focusing on a personal encounter and relationship with God that can be summed up in agape love.” Stated simply, charismatic churches withdrew from the less of emotional realm of popular culture.

This withdrawing of Christianity from normal culture is even more extensive in the seeker-sensitive church. Biblehub clarifies that these churches use contemporary worship music, give practical sermons, encourage casual dress, and carry out community events. This is typically portrayed as making the Christian message more relevant, but in practice it means limiting the extent of Christian transformation. This weakness is mentioned by one pastor who left the seeker-sensitive church movement. “The bottom line is that what you win people with is what you have to keep people with. If you market yourself as a church for people who don’t like church, then you can’t do churchy things without expecting significant pushback... If you sell them on Christianity Lite then you need to continue to offer Christianity Lite week after week after week.”

Deng’s Chinese reforms followed a similar path of tentative, limited pulling back of communist control followed by more extensive pulling back. Wikipedia summarizes, “The first stage, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, involved the de-collectivization of agriculture, the opening up of the country to foreign investment, and permission for entrepreneurs to start businesses. However, a large percentage of industries remained state-owned. The second stage of reform, in the late 1980s and 1990s, involved the privatization and contracting out of much state-owned industry.” Another Chinese politician referred to this as a birdcage economy: “According to Chen, ‘the cage is the plan, and it may be large or small. But within the cage the bird [the economy] is free to fly as he wishes.’”

The fundamental question with both Deng’s Chinese reforms and with the charismatic renewal is how to reconcile the fundamental conflict between rational improvements and the underlying mindset of a Teacher ideology imposed by some exalted Mercy source. Saying this another way, how much capitalism can Marxism permit before it ceases to be communism? Similarly, how much secular rational thought can Protestantism permit before it ceases to be Bible-based? How large can the birdcage become before it ceases to function effectively as a birdcage?

This is not a trivial question because the basic premise of Marxism is that capitalism is evil and needs to be replaced by communism. Thus, when communism steps out of the way and allows capitalism to function, then communism is implicitly admitting that it has no reason to exist. Why go through the societal agony of a communist revolution if the end result is to return to capitalism? Similarly, the basic premise of Protestant Christianity is that secular culture is evil and needs to be replaced by submission to biblical morality. Thus, when Protestantism steps out of the way and allows secular culture to function, then Protestantism is implicitly admitting that it has no reason to exist. Why go through the personal agony of submitting to Jesus as Lord if the end result is to return to secular culture?

I have had to face this question several times when developing mental symmetry. Mental symmetry began during the charismatic renewal as a teaching on Romans 12 spiritual gifts. My brother Lane made this a universal theory by studying secular biographies. I extended this by discovering that it was possible to map the seven cognitive styles onto brain regions. During the 1980s and 90s, I treated mental symmetry primarily as a system of cognitive development, in which I pursued the goal of developing all seven cognitive modules of my mind in an integrated manner. This was a secular, rational pursuit guided by a cognitive model that defined moral goodness as that which causes cognitive modules to function together in an integrated manner. However, as I continued to follow this approach, cognitive explanations for Christian doctrines started naturally appearing. Thus, my cognitive search for universal truth ended up returning to biblical doctrines. My willingness to let go of absolute truth in favor of universal truth eventually led me back to the Bible as an accurate description of universal truth.

A major struggle occurred when I discovered that mental symmetry provides a cognitive explanation for both the Trinitarian God of Christianity and the Protestant prayer of salvation. (For instance, mental symmetry interprets ‘asking Jesus into your heart’ as an internal relationship with a cognitively natural, imaginary person. In other words, personal identity in Mercy thought is interpreting the assistance of concrete technical thought as salvation from the imaginary person of Jesus.) When I encountered these cognitive explanations, I had to decide if I would hold onto core Christian doctrines as absolute truth or whether I would allow these doctrines to be reinterpreted as universal cognitive principles. My decision to embrace universal cognitive principles resulted in both academic and biblical success. On the academic side, I have been able to use mental symmetry as a cognitive meta-theory for several technical specializations. On the biblical side, I have been able to use mental symmetry as a cognitive meta-theory to analyze two-thirds of the New Testament in the original Greek. And focusing upon universal cognitive principles did not trap me within a materialistic mindset but instead made it possible to come up with a rational system of thought that can extend to include both the spiritual and the supernatural.

Wikipedia mentions some of the ways that Deng addressed the contradiction between Marxist ideology and a capitalist economy. He suggested that socialism can only follow capitalism once capitalism has been sufficiently developed. “Deng argued that China was in the primary stage of socialism and that the duty of the party was to perfect so-called ‘socialism with Chinese characteristics’ and ‘seek truth from facts’. (This somewhat resembles the Leninist theoretical justification of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in the 1920s, which argued that the Soviet Union had not gone deeply enough into the capitalist phase and therefore needed limited capitalism in order to fully evolve its means of production.)” In other words, socialism will come in the future and capitalism is needed now in order to prepare citizens for the coming socialism. Wikipedia adds that Soviet communism also used this excuse. Similarly, Protestantism has responded to its embrace of secular culture by postponing the kingdom of God to some future time. One website describes this kind of thinking. “A primary distinctive of the Third Wave that differentiates them from both Pentecostal and Charismatic believers is their emphasis on what theologians have called the Already and Not Yet of Christian experience... The kingdom of God and its supernatural power is already here, present with us and manifest in numerous ways, but will not yet be disclosed in its fullness until the Second Coming of Christ and the inauguration of the New Heaven and New Earth.”

Wikipedia explains that “To ‘seek truth from facts’ means that communists should test theory against reality rather than adhere dogmatically to theory.  The slogan implies respect for facts and using facts to inform theory and policy.” Cognitively speaking, this means allowing Perceiver thought to function. This is a critical transition because a basic premise of Marxism is that Perceiver thought should not be allowed to function. According to communism, salvation is by works alone. But notice that using Perceiver thought is being viewed as a means of enhancing communism and allowing it to function more effectively.

A similar embracing of Server sequences can be seen in modern Protestant churches. The basic premise of Protestant Christianity is that salvation is by ‘faith alone’: Salvation comes from using Perceiver thought to ‘believe’ in biblical truth and not from using Server thought to perform religious action. But when a modern church is adopting certain methods and procedures in order to function more effectively, then Server thought and Server actions have implicitly been brought back into the realm of personal salvation. This also is a critical transition. But notice that Server thought is being viewed as a means of enhancing Protestant belief and allowing it to spread more effectively.

Deng also blurred the lines between capitalism and communism. Wikipedia quotes Deng, “A planned economy is not equivalent to socialism, because there is planning under capitalism too; a market economy is not capitalism, because there are markets under socialism too. Planning and market forces are both means of controlling economic activity. The essence of socialism is liberation and development of the productive forces, elimination of exploitation and polarisation.” Looking at this more carefully, the essence of Russian communism is to expand factory owners telling factory workers what to do into the communist party telling communist citizens what to do; Teacher theory from the Communist Party leads to Server actions by the Communist comrades. Going the other way, the essence of capitalism is Adam Smith’s concept of the invisible hand, in which Teacher order emerges organically from each individual pursuing personal economic goals. Thus, strictly speaking, a planned economy is socialism and a market economy is capitalism.

But socialism has discovered that fixating upon general plans in Teacher thought leads to chaos at the Mercy level of specific experiences, while capitalism has discovered that undesirable Teacher order can emerge if one fixates upon personal freedom in Mercy thought in a laissez-faire manner. Deng stepped back from this distinction between communism and capitalism by focusing upon the larger communist goal of enabling Server sequences of ‘the productive forces’ while minimizing Perceiver divisions of ‘exploitation and polarization’. Notice that this stepping back avoids the contradiction rather than dealing with it.

Similarly, the seeker-friendly church has blurred the lines between Protestant Christianity and secular society. Strictly speaking, submitting personally to the Bible as my source of absolute truth means not following popular culture, while embracing self-centered secular culture means doubting the absolute truth of the Bible. But modern Protestantism has discovered that surviving in the physical world requires common sense and self-preservation, while secular culture has discovered that society requires some form of moral guidance and that one cannot just allow everyone to do what they want in a laissez-faire manner. The neo-charismatic church steps back from this distinction by focusing upon the larger Protestant goal of encouraging Perceiver ‘faith’ in God and salvation while downplaying the secular emphasis upon Server actions of striving and accomplishments: ‘God accepts you just the way you are. You do not have to work to gain God’s approval.’ This also is a stepping back that avoids the contradiction rather than dealing with it.

I think that the current Chinese situation can be summarized as an ambivalence to Western capitalism. Wikipedia summarizes, “Even critics of China’s market reforms do not wish to see a backtrack of these two decades of reforms, but rather propose corrective measures to offset some of the social issues caused by existing reforms.”

A primary reason for these social issues is the modern Chinese fixation upon money and wealth. For instance, a 2022 academic paper explains that “Reform initiatives since 1978 have held economic growth as the first priority and insisted that all efforts should serve this goal. The government proposed a pragmatic strategy that focuses on concrete goals such as developing productivity and raising people’s living standards. Under these circumstances, ‘it is glorious to be rich’ has permeated all of society as a collective ideology. Today, money has become the most prevalent topic in the daily lives of Chinese people.... For an adult, the major criterion for selecting one’s job is income, not personal interest. This is also reflected in consumer culture. Branded products are bought to signify power, achievement, and status rather than to satisfy personal needs.” Notice that the economic reforms of Deng taught personal pursuit of economic wealth as a facet of the Teacher theory of communism. Perceiver thought is functioning at the objective level of things and gadgets and money but this was taught through cultural MMNs based in the personal authority of communist leaders. Using Perceiver thought in the objective realm has led to Platonic forms of money and visible wealth but the motivation is coming from cultural MMNs of approval rather than from Mercy feelings of enjoyment derived from this visible wealth.

Similarly, redefining the kingdom of God as running a successful church that creates the feeling of encountering God has led to a similar externalization of blind ‘faith’ in the Bible. Instead of submitting internally to the moral truths of the Bible, Christian success is viewed as getting America to submit externally to the legislations of evangelical Christianity. A 2025 article describes this shift of evangelicalism. “[Trump’s] presidency has changed the fabric of evangelicalism. For instance, polls on whether character and morality is important in leadership flipped post-2016. Evangelicals who once emphasized character so strongly were now sort of saying that ‘the ends justify the means,’ and a leader can still be professionally trustworthy if they are personally unethical. But Trump has not only changed what evangelicals think, he has also changed who they are. Evangelicals have changed. Many started to identify themselves as evangelical after aligning with Trump politically, even without being part of evangelical churches. Moreover, Trump has become a magnet, drawing in politically conservative voters to evangelicalism, and pushing out progressives who couldn’t reconcile support for him.” Notice how Evangelicalism has shifted from following biblical morality to pursuing political conservatism.

A similar kind of shift has happened in countries that are guided by potent cultural and religious MMNs. A neo-charismatic Christianity that steps back by accepting local cultural MMNs has often turned into a syncretistic Christianity that is shaped by local cultural and religious MMNs. Wikipedia explains, “The greatest concentration of Neo-charismatic churches is found in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.  In some regions, especially Africa and Latin America, Neo-charismatics are sometimes condemned by Pentecostals and Charismatics for their spiritual practices or for combining local cosmologies with Christian beliefs.” In other words, embracing the Holy Spirit without having an internal map of righteousness makes one vulnerable to swallowing spiritual practices that are incompatible with righteousness. Mental symmetry avoids this problem by analyzing all spirituality in terms of mental and spiritual wholeness. Building upon universal principles of spirituality is essential because some aspects of charismatic spirituality are not righteous, while some aspects of traditional spirituality are righteous. Sifting through these various practices requires a robust internal map of spiritual and cognitive wholeness.

Redefining Marxism

This essay has made a distinction between Russian and Chinese communism, connecting Russian communism with normal Protestantism and Chinese communism with Pentecostal Protestantism. These distinctions appear to be breaking down. Politically speaking, China is implicitly supporting Russia in its war on Ukraine. Religiously speaking, it is difficult to distinguish between the emotional appeal of the typical Christian worship band and the spiritual exuberance of the typical Pentecostal service. This ambiguity is a characteristic of the third wave, neo-charismatic movement. Wikipedia states, “The Neo-charismatic categorization is broad and diverse and includes any group that is not considered Pentecostal or Charismatic but still emphasizes the power of the Holy spirit and supernatural signs and wonders.”

Given the extensive support of evangelical and neo-charismatic groups for Trumpism, I do not have much hope for American Protestant Christendom. I also do not have much hope for Russian communism, because Russia has become a ‘gas station run by Mafia masquerading as a country’ and the Mafia that runs Russia is trying to destroy its neighbors. This does not mean that everyone within these systems is lost, but it does mean that the systems as a whole appear to be fatally flawed. In contrast, Chinese communism has succeeded in becoming the factory of the world. Chinese communism still suffers from major flaws, but it has also achieved legitimate success as a system. Therefore, this essay will finish by exploring a possible path forward for Chinese communism.

Marxism claims that history is ultimately an external struggle between bourgeoisie and worker classes driven by universal economic principles. Quoting from Wikipedia, “Under the capitalist mode of production, this struggle materialises between the minority who own the means of production (the bourgeoisie) and the vast majority of the population who produce goods and services (the proletariat)... A Marxist would conclude that capitalism exploits and oppresses the proletariat; therefore, capitalism will inevitably lead to a proletarian revolution. In a socialist society, private property—as the means of production—would be replaced by cooperative ownership.” Stated cognitively, factory workers use Server thought to implement the Teacher order created by factory owners. Factory workers notice that they are doing the Server actions while the owners are experiencing the benefits in Mercy thought. Factory workers conclude that they should receive the benefits for their own Server actions and they decide to take control of the factories.

Chinese communism has succeeded in taking control of the ‘factory’ of the world. Most things sold in most countries are now ‘made in China’. But Chinese consumers do not trust the quality of items made in China. And we saw earlier that many items are purchased for the social status that these items convey and not in order to enjoy the items. What is the point of being the factory for the world if these factories produce goods that cannot be trusted and are purchased by consumers who are incapable of enjoying them? This is not a physical problem because the Chinese factories are capable of producing quality items when this is required by foreign customers. And Chinese factories are also capable of adjusting what they produce almost instantly in response to changing consumer demand.

Instead, this is an internal problem characterized by inadequate Perceiver thought. Perceiver thought provides the internal factual integrity that is required for a modern economy to function, including delivering what was promised and paying for goods and services. This is examined in detail in an academic paper I wrote that analyzes John Stuart Mill’s 19th-century work on the origins of modern economics. Perceiver thought also replaces the emotional pressure of cultural MMNs with solid facts of personal identity, value, and need, making it possible to purchase and enjoy items for their own sake.

The three-stage path of personal transformation that builds this required Perceiver thought can be formulated using Marxist language. There is a ‘class struggle’ between righteous people who allow their Teacher understanding to guide their Server actions and the average person who does not make any connection between verbal Teacher theory and practical Server action. Right now the average unrighteous person is in charge. That struggle describes the second stage of personal transformation. It is a class struggle because one becomes righteous by choosing to follow the TMN of a concept of God rather than be motivated by MMNs of social approval. Going further, China has become complacent because the average Chinese citizen has become motivated primarily by social MMNs. Thus, a revolution is needed. This is not an external and corporate revolution but rather an internal and personal revolution in which individual Chinese citizens choose to become part of a new class of people who are guided internally by TMNs of righteousness rather than by MMNs of social approval.

Going further, Marxism maintains that this class struggle is preceded by the development of capitalism. Similarly, the second stage of developing righteousness is preceded by the first stage of building a Teacher understanding of God upon personal honesty in Perceiver thought. During this first stage it is not possible to be guided by Teacher understanding because this Teacher understanding does not exist. The goal of the first stage is to construct such a Teacher understanding. Instead of trying to change personal behavior, one focuses upon being honest about personal behavior and understanding personal behavior. Modern communist China has largely gone through this first stage at the economic and social level by constructing a societal system of factory production that is capable of meeting the standards of integrity, quality, and infrastructure required by Western consumers. What China has produced is not just a few factories but rather the Teacher order of a massive, flexible, efficient system of production.

Thus, it is now possible for Chinese citizens to choose as individuals to become emotionally guided by the TMN of the Chinese production system. This does not mean becoming a human cog within the Chinese factory system, but it is a choice that can be made even by those who are currently human cogs within the Chinese factory system. That is because the second step of growing righteousness is an internal choice. Instead of being motivated by social MMNs one chooses to become personally motivated by the Teacher order of modern scientific understanding and production. Paul mentions this principle in Ephesians 6:5-7. “Slaves, obey the earthly masters with fear and trembling, in sincerity of your heart as to Christ, not with eye-service as men-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with good will as to the Lord and not to men.” This is sometimes viewed as Paul condoning slavery, but it describes the cognitive process of becoming mentally free of a mindset of slavery. Instead of being guided by MMNs of social approval, one is being motivated by the TMN of a concept of God.

The purpose of the second stage is not to turn into human robots but rather to become reborn as individuals in the third stage. When individuals internalize behaving a manner that is guided by rational, technologically compatible Teacher understanding, then the government can step out of the way and limit itself to guiding society in a general manner rather than having to control every aspect of society. Using Marxist language, the state can finally wither away. Similarly, instead of forcing people to work together in Mercy thought through group ownership and communes, individuals will be emotionally guided to function in a cooperative manner by an internal concept of the Holy Spirit.

This discussion about current Chinese communism is personally appropriate because I just received an email today that a long-time friend of my brother Lane (whom I recently met for the first time) has just published a four volume set on leadership and business for the Chinese market. I have not yet examined the content of these books but chapter 19 in the second book gives an introduction to cognitive styles as developed by Lane and myself. Receiving this email the same day that I was writing this section about a possible path forward for Chinese communism is an example of synchronicity. I also experienced a synchronicity when meeting with this individual. This does not mean that I have turned pro-Chinese or that I endorse communism. I remain deeply troubled about many aspects of Chinese communism. But the biblical book of Jonah makes it clear that God sometimes shows mercy even upon those whom one would normally consider to be the enemy. I have tried—and failed—for decades to share mental symmetry with both Christians and with Western academia. My previous essay looked at Luke 13-15 and those chapters suggest that the group that initially embraces mental symmetry will not be the church and it will not be Western academia.

I can think of three reasons related to communism why China has become so successful as the factory for the world: First, Chinese factories are talented at copying. This means analyzing the Server steps taken by some gadget and then constructing a copy that performs the same Server steps. Communism emphasizes Server thought. Second, Chinese business largely ignores Perceiver rules of intellectual property. Thus, the ability to copy Server gadgets is accompanied by no Perceiver rules that restrict copying. Communism rebels from Perceiver rules. Third, Chinese businesses have developed a community of practical technical expertise that makes it easy to construct the various parts of a gadget. Commune-ism enforces such interaction.

The success that Chinese factory has achieved physically through Server thought, mental symmetry has allowed me to achieve mentally through Perceiver thought. I am a Perceiver person who has learned to use Perceiver thought to build Perceiver connections between both technical specializations and mental networks. I have used this mental ability to construct a meta-theory in Teacher thought. I can think of three reasons for this success—which are analogous to the three reasons for Chinese success: First, I perform most of my research through intellectual copying. Stated another way, I do secondary research that is based upon the technical thinking and experimental findings of others. Copying allows Chinese factories to build upon development done by others. Similarly, secondary research allows me to build upon the research that has been done by others. The charismatic renewal encouraged individuals to use their spiritual gifts. My spiritual gift is the gift of prophecy or Perceiver. As a Perceiver person, I am using this gift to function in a prophetic manner. Second, my Perceiver connections largely ignore Server procedures of official methodology. Each technical specialization has developed its own approved methods of gathering and analyzing data. I am somewhat aware of official procedures because I place greater weight upon data that has been gathered using proper methods. But when I look for Perceiver connections between fields, I do not limit my thinking to academic publications that follow approved academic methodology. Instead, I gather as wide a factual net as possible without allowing any Server procedures of official methodology to limit my thinking. The charismatic renewal encouraged individuals to use their spiritual gifts in a manner that bypassed official church procedures. Third, I have studied enough technical disciplines in sufficient detail to develop a mental map of abstract knowledge that makes it easy to connect the Perceiver facts of one with the facts of another. Similarly, the charismatic renewal encouraged Christians to exercise their spiritual gifts with one another.

Intellectual property is a strange juxtaposition that is both necessary and self-contradictory. On the one hand, some form of intellectual property is required, because a person who comes up with some idea should be paid for the time and cost of developing this idea without having it stolen by others. History is full of examples of one person developing an idea and another person getting rich off of this idea. But on the other hand, intellectual property can only be defined to the extent that property is not intellectual.

The fundamental principle of physical ownership is that if I own some object then someone else does not. If someone else wants to use my object, then that person must either steal or borrow the object from me. This limitation breaks down as property becomes increasingly intellectual. For instance, if ideas are printed in physical books, then ownership of some idea can be equated with ownership of the physical book that describes this idea. Going further, if functions are carried out by the physical parts of some machine, then ownership of an idea can be equated with ownership of the physical device that implement this idea. For instance, the idea of receiving radio waves is carried out by the physical object of a radio. Going further, stealing the idea means stealing the book that describes this idea or the physical device that implements this idea.

But suppose that I store some song or movie on a CD or memory stick. It is simple then to make an identical copy of that song or movie without stealing the original CD or memory stick. Going further, if some physical device is controlled by an onboard computer that is programmed to carry out some function, then it is easy to reprogram the computer to carry out a different function. The very concept of theft becomes meaningless because one can copy the original without taking the original away from its owner or reprogram the device to carry out an entirely different function—as illustrated by the various apps on a smartphone.

Going still further, ownership is based upon the premise that it is possible for the average person to identify the object that is being owned. For instance, if I say that I own a chair, this implies that it is possible for people to look at this chair and identify it as the object that I claim to own. But intellectual property now applies to abstract concepts that even experts find it difficult to identify. When a company comes up with some new high-tech device, it can be very difficult for that company to know if the device is violating some claim of intellectual property.

Summarizing, Western companies whose ideas are being ‘stolen’ by Chinese factories can legitimately claim that they are not being paid for their work. But the Chinese factory who ‘steals’ the idea can also legitimately claim that intellectual property is an artificial concept that contradicts itself.

I do not know of any resolution to the problem of intellectual property within today’s materialistic society. I do know that the logistics of international trade used to protect the average Western consumer from coming face-to-face with Chinese violations of intellectual property. But Internet commerce now makes it possible for Western consumers to buy directly from Chinese factories, bringing Western businesses and consumers face-to-face with Chinese violations of intellectual property. Thus, a solution has to be found.

The only solution that I know of involves the principle of righteousness. A person becomes righteous by performing righteous actions that are guided by the TMN of a concept of God and not by MMNs of social approval. When someone’s intellectual property is stolen, then that person loses money and approval, but that misappropriation also makes it possible for the individual to become righteous. Stealing someone else’s idea, in contrast, makes me intellectually and spiritually indebted to that person. In today’s materialistic economy, the benefits of being righteous are primarily cognitive, personal, and spiritual. But if a real Holy Spirit based in universal principles started to move, then becoming righteous would lead to real spiritual power. The idea of a spiritual economy has been mentioned in previous essays, but this essay’s discussion on the Holy Spirit helps to explain the framework within which a spiritual economy could function.

The cognitive parallel for intellectual property is the official methodology. Methodology is important for physical experiments and for determining legitimate correlations, but it gets in the way when looking for less obvious connections. That is because repeating the Server actions of official methodology will cause TMNs to form within the mind that emotionally impose the methodology upon the data. Using the language of Maslow’s hammer, the person who has a mental hammer will treat every situation as a potential nail.

Focusing upon sequences is essential, and I have found that the very concept of sequence is lacking from most theology. But official scientific methodology also contradicts itself. The purpose of scientific research is to discover how the natural world functions by discovering the Server sequences of natural cause-and-effect. Over the centuries, science has developed procedures for learning more effectively how the natural world functions. But focusing upon scientific procedure turns science from a study of how the natural world behaves into a description of how a group of scientists behave. This redefinition of science can be seen, for instance, in the appendix that Thomas Kuhn added in 1970 to the second edition of his book on paradigm shifts. Thus, when I use mental symmetry as a meta-theory to analyze some technical specialization, specialists within that field can legitimately claim that I am not following the accepted methodology of that field. But I can also legitimately claim that official methodology is an artificial structure that is obscuring the knowledge of how things work.

I do not know of any resolution to this problem as long as science functions in an objective manner that ignores the thinking and character of the scientist. I do know that it used to be possible to teach students to use accepted methodology through taking classes, assigning homework, and giving exams. But the rise of AI means that students can now pass classes without learning or doing anything. What is the point of some specialization insisting upon following official methodology when most of the students of that field are using AI to bypass the structured acquisition of official knowledge? A solution has to be found.

In today’s objective academia, personal character is of secondary concern. However, if rational Teacher understanding expressed itself through the Holy Spirit, then mental networks of personal character would become significant. The student who cheated his way to an academic degree would lack the mental networks of character required to add a spiritual element to technical knowledge.

Conclusion

This essay has compared Protestant Christianity with communism. I have found over the years that it is very useful to compare vastly different areas for similar cognitive principles because this helps to uncover new principles. This essay currently feels incomplete. I think that important cognitive principles are being described but I also feel that some of the ideas in this essay need to be developed further. And I have learned that such further development can only happen over time. Thus, I think that this essay should be regarded as a work in progress rather than as a complete and final statement. I am not aware of any logical inadequacies in what I have written. Instead, I just have the gut feeling that there is more to the story.