Focus On The Powerful

Modern conversion work is a flip from what it used to be.  Nowadays the tendency is to go into an area and focus on the poor, the simple powerless people, deal with their everyday economic and social problems, meet them one on one,  and this might attract them to your religion.  Christians do this today especially, but this has not been the approach for most of Christian history.  The missionary came to convert the powerful, and then their subjects would follow.  It works especially in a hierarchical culture with kings and queens, who have subjects that follow or else. The downside is that the church tends to associate more easily with wealth and power, as can be seen in Western History. It does not much trust in government by the people.  A second problem is that the converts are not true followers of the faith, but rather followers of the prince or power figure.  You end up promoting survival, economic advantage, but the attraction of the faith becomes secondary.  I like the 12 step modern way.  It is attraction, one on one encounter, in which one person is attracted to the way of life of the second person and wants what they have.  Everyone is equal.  No bosses to sway you.