Chapter 1 explains the theoretical framework deployed throughout the book, largely drawn from the companion volume, Unearthly Powers. Above all, this means explaining the two forms of religiosity – immanentism and transcendentalism – and how they related to each other. While immanentism is a default or universal strand of human life, transcendentalism defines what is distinctive about the religions of salvation that emerged from the Axial Age of the first millennium BCE. These world religions also contained an immanentist element, however, even as they produced reform movements that insisted on the transcendentalist dimension. These modes also gave rise to two different means by which rulers could be sacralised: divinised kingship (immanentism) and righteous kingship (transcendentalism). The chapter then fleshes out a tripartite model for ruler conversion: (1) religious diplomacy often first induced rulers to favour foreign missionaries; (2) immanent power, or supernatural assistance in this life, tended to be crucial in convincing them to make a change of allegiance, and (3) the Christianisation of their realms was linked to its capacity to enhance their authority. Lastly, the themes of cultural glamour and intellectual appeal are introduced.

This chapter focuses on the individuals who actively worked to protect and save members of targeted groups during genocides, often at great personal risk. By presenting sociological, psychological, and neuroscience research designed to understand better the profile of those who risked their lives to rescue strangers in times of war, this chapter asks what makes this small subset of the population react differently than others. By combining research and interviews with rescuers, the chapter shows that both individual processes and environmental factors contribute to risking one’s own life to rescue threatened human beings. People who engaged in rescue efforts during a particular event came from a range of different backgrounds, and no single factor can be reliably used to predict why they chose to help. Some rescuers were motivated by their religious or moral beliefs, while others were motivated by empathy or a desire to protect. The chapter also argues that even though rescuers are not numerous, they are nonetheless a living examples that another choice is possible, and that human beings may find the strength to overcome hateful propaganda. This raises hope of developing efficient interventions aimed at reducing susceptibility to blind obedience.