ABSTRACT
B elief is power. The events at LeMoyne-Owen, Olivet, and Tusculum richly illustrate that belief in a vision can draw people together and orchestrate their efforts in support of a shared goal. The creation of a vision, its subsequent implementation, and the ultimate formation of an ideology must therefore be viewed as a political act, and advancing a vision entails the use of time-honored political stratagems: Campaigning, constituency building, vote counting, and log rolling (“buying” support with promises or power). At these three colleges, a whole host of political strategies were used as the change process emerged, unfolded, and finally drew to its conclusion. The purpose of this chapter is three-fold: first, to describe the strategies used to advance the new vision; second, to demonstrate how faith in an ideology can be a powerful political tool; and, third, to explore the dark side of ideological change—the capacity of belief to blind adherents, cause them to misjudge the opposition, and even cause the formation of rival sects that view one another's goals as heretical and harmful to the cause.
