Open Source Religion and Faith (The quick definition)
Open Source Religion (also known as open source spirituality and open source faith,) is a new spiritual movement and new form of meta-spirituality in which:
1.) All of humanity's life affirming spiritual and science-related wisdom and processes are made available for any individual or organization to access, evaluate and use to enhance, expand and empower their personal spirituality and/or their personal life success.
2.) Once a person or organization understands the key working principles of the co-creational open source spirituality peer-to-peer process, then they too can begin contributing their spiritual and/or science related wisdom into expanding and refining the open source spiritual commons for all to use.
3.) At its most fundamental level it is not just omni-denominational. It is also trans-denominational. In its trans-denominational iteration, it is the new form of meta-spirituality that is naturally and inexorably emerging out of evolution itself to expand the common knowledge and wisdom wealth of global spiritual commons to better deal with all of the challenges that we face in the 21st century.
The Traditional Meaning of the Open Source Idea
"All of us together are smarter than just a few of us."
Open Source is a revolutionary idea born recently in the software development world. It means that the underlying software source code is accessible, open, transparent, and free for all to see, use and improve! (Software source code is the internal programming code that has been assembled by a programmer that makes the software work, useful and effective for a specific task)
What is unique about open source software code as opposed to the original form of closed proprietary software code is that it can be improved by any person who reads the code and knows what to do to improve or change it, providing only that they too make their new software source code improvements accessible, open, transparent and free for all to see use and improve as well.
The new idea and practices of open source software code in accessibility, transparency, and free sharing of innovation has created a veritable revolution in new software capacities and knowledge, distribution and services of all kinds on and off the internet. The results of the open source software revolution also has been one of the great facilitators for the democratization and empowerment of the flow of vital information around the world via the internet since the invention of the printing press. Open source software and the open source sharing concepts have also been a vital resource-leveraging mega-aid for the empowerment of non profit organizations, non governmental organizations (NGOs), corporations and governments everywhere to share vital information for social and life betterment.
What Open Source Means When it is Applied to Creating an Evolutionary, Meta-Spirituality
The open source concept applied to this new meta-spirituality, process and movement can be stated in many parallel concepts to how traditional open source software functions. It too is a mega tool and super process for sharing vital information (from the totality humanity's life affirming spiritual heritage and sciences,) for social and life betterment
For its primary source code #1 the evolutionary, open source spirituality movement uses all the available sources from humanity’s great heritage of spiritual wisdom. This also includes current science related information and humanity's knowledge base of what can be or become destructive in personal or organized spirituality or religion. Because of its inclusive and transcending evolutionary qualities, open source spirituality appears to be evolving the next natural step in spirituality and religion well beyond what is found in today's denominational sectarianism or even the progressive interfaith movement --- namely a new spiritual era for new forms of open source, evolutionary and omni-denominational spiritualities and religions.
Like the programmers who collect any code or formulas that they might need to perform open source software code processes, open source spirituality collaborators and co-creators collect and organize the principles and processes from humanity’s vast spiritual and scientific related wisdom with the intention of sharing these processes and this wisdom related to performing life's most vital spiritual and secular/personal tasks as effectively as possible within a new form of an open source, global spiritual commons. This open source global spiritual commons created by using the peer-to-peer open source spirituality principles (below) becomes a empowering meta resource for individuals seeking to create their own spiritual paths, religions and/or personal life paths.
This is partially because in this commons, a great cross pollenization of spiritual and scientific ideas and processes can take place and, completely new wisdom, principles and process can emerge from the ongoing dialectical synthesis process derived from the cycle of including and transcending. The accumulating new knowledge and perspectives expanding within the global commons can greatly aid any individual in their personal growth as well as expand their direct spiritual experience of the Ultimate Reality and improve their balanced practice of the virtues toward achieving spiritual completeness.
When individuals use the open source global spiritual commons to create their own personal spiritual path, religion or personal life path they are now creating what we call personal source code 2, which if they also add it back into the global spiritual commons also expands and enhances the existing primary source code 1 (humanity's spiritual and science related wisdom,) within the global spiritual commons.
Just as programmers need to know the minimum technical principles for creating effective software code to make effective software products, individuals in the open source spirituality co-creative peer-to-peer collaboration need to know the minimum spiritual and administrative principles and processes (many are listed below in short form at the end of this section,) to work effectively to help expand the global spiritual commons (GSC) and to emerge or create effective new spiritual visions, perspectives and contributions that can be used by anyone to forward their personal spirituality or to grow in their secular life as well.
This assembled open source heritage of spiritual wisdom and related science knowledge (the GSC) is then made open, easily accessible, transparent, and free in various online materials, courses, books etc. for the spiritual and practical wisdom cross-pollenization benefits for all individuals and all organization to use and further expand, add to, edit and improve. All originators of this collection of humanity's spiritual and science wisdom (the source code # 1 materials,) can share (cross-pollinate) their spiritual wisdom additions or improvements in this open source collaboration and even be recognized for their contributions, thereby helping to expand this new global spiritual wisdom commons in this peer-to-peer process.
Inside the open source global spiritual commons is a new global culture of support where individuals can, as they so decide, evolve or modify their current beliefs or practices to expand and improve their own life goals and their personal spirituality. This is greatly facilitated because of wisdom cross-pollenization and any graceful personal questioning interactions with humanity's vast spiritual and scientific heritage held with in the global spiritual commons, which is emerging because of the open source spirituality process.
If you are you potentially interested in becoming a co-creator peer in this evolutionary open source spirituality or in contributing your unique wisdom to the global spiritual commons, then read all of additional open source spirituality principles presented. For now, here are a few very basic starter principles of open source spirituality movement: (Full descriptions provided later in this manifesto.)
No Requirement of Allegiance: The global spiritual commons is greatly aided by the fact that there is no requirement of allegiance to some particular organizational, religious or cultural ism, authoritative book/scripture or, some particular religious or secular authority to use it, add to it, edit or improve it. (More later.)
On Organizational Spiritual Authority and Revelation: In the global spiritual commons and in the open source spirituality movement it is necessary that there are no highest Popes, Bishops, Avatars, Gurus, Rabbis, Imams, etc. or, any religious hierarchy of final spiritual authority or religious orthodoxy outside the spiritual authority of the individual. No one spiritual source, spiritual teacher, founder, leader or organization has the universal or final spiritual authority on what is authentic or appropriate spiritual wisdom, spiritual truth or spiritual law for anyone other than themselves. (More later.)
Questioning of Faith Beliefs and Practices: We have come to a new point in humanity’s spiritual history where if individuals or religious organization’s assert to another that their own faith beliefs or practices should be believed or followed as fact and/or that specific behavior is dictated or ordered by those faith beliefs or practices, then those faith beliefs or practices should be open to a gracious public questioning and dialog on their factuality and/or usefulness in directing specific behaviors. (More later.)
Miracles: In open source spirituality, miracles that defy the natural laws are treated as a personal issue of subjective faith. Miracles may not be used as proof of spiritual authority or spiritual truth for anyone other than the individual experiencing the miracle even if the miracle has been subjected to rigorous scientific investigation. (More later.)
The Pathologies and Abuses of Religion: An Open Source Spirituality that will help expand the global spiritual commons will need to confront and deal with the issues of the pathologies and abuses of religion within its knowledge base in a forthright and honest way. (More later.)
The Polarization and Usefulness of Information: Polarization in the global spiritual commons and the open source spirituality movement is avoided by the recognition that humanity’s vast heritage of spiritual wisdom is partial, evolving and, has its own appropriate time, way, place, and target audience for specific applications. In this movement our combined heritage of spiritual wisdom is appreciated in the context of:
a. the age and scope of spiritual or social problems this wisdom was intended to solve,
b. the culture it came from and for what types of personalities, learning styles and psychological developmental levels it was intended to reach and serve, and
c. its effectiveness in a specific situation,
d. does it cause any consequent harm or conflicts,
e. does it create non-inclusive, unfair benefits for one individual/group over another group/individual or
f. how congruent is it with the body of other spiritual wisdom found on our "shrinking" planet and within the global spiritual commons. (More later.)The Non-Equality of All Spiritual Wisdom: Not all spiritual wisdom is equal. The inclusive collection of all of humanity's spiritual wisdom as part of any synthesis process will naturally involve both general categorization and then some pruning of this wisdom from our combined spiritual heritage. Some spiritual wisdom will be more widely applicable, inclusive, universal, life affirming and even empirical. Some spiritual wisdom will be more useful than others in that it is more effective or efficient in producing the fruits of authentic spiritual growth in more people with various personality types, psychological developmental levels, learning styles, cultural backgrounds, etc. in a safe and balanced way. (More Later.)
Personalities in the Movement: The peer-to-peer open source spirituality movement gladly accepts the co-creational assistance from anyone, but it gives no inappropriate or special attention, honor, position or consideration to any person or organization involved because they are personalities or organizations of wealth, fame, power, specialized influence, celebrity or pre-existing ecclesiastical authority or position within a religious or spiritual organization. (More later.)
Diversity: All individuals, organizations and teachers of spiritual wisdom or science related knowledge are encouraged to contribute their wisdom to the open source spirituality collaboration. (More later.)
On the Process Itself: As in open source software, where software development is an unending process of continual upgrades, open source spirituality processes for expanding the global spiritual commons is also more of an ongoing evolving, collaborative process than any final result. It too will be constantly upgraded. (More later.)
Copyright Ownership, Commercial Uses, Individual Recognition, Patents and Trademarks applied to Spiritual Wisdom and the Global Spiritual Commons: Patents and Trademarks when applied to the collection or specific pieces of this collected spiritual wisdom are misplaced. This is because these materials are intended to be as open source as possible and, ultimately only the original author and original creator, (the Ever Present Origin of such reality and information,) could lay valid claim to the ultimate original creative source rights. This does not mean that original descriptions of this wisdom cannot be open CreativeCommons.com type copyrighted either for personal recognition or as part of a right commercial livelihood. It also does not mean that some type of flexible suggested donation or fair exchange be requested for their use by their creators for any of the materials, courses or books used within the global spiritual commons. In a global spiritual commons in which all can participate freely and all feel the common heritage ownership and/or open source co-creation trying to patent or trademark the spiritual and science related spiritual wisdom to inflexibly lock it down is contrary to the most fundamental principles of open source spirituality. (More later.)
In summary and in addition to the benefits mentioned above:
1.) Open source spirituality is a natural evolutionary emergence and inevitability derived from the key principles of the personality spirituality movement, the revolution of open source software and theory and, the reality of the Internet bringing together all human knowledge.
2.) Open source spirituality is a new means of open, peer-to-peer co-creation to co-evolve the collective spiritual wisdom of humanity, assist each individual expand their personal growth, success and personal spirituality, create a better world and --- improve understanding and tolerance between the religions of the world. It is the next natural evolutionary step beyond and both transcending and including the work and goals of the Interfaith Movement.
3.) The open source principles and processes can inform any new spiritual movement. Open source principles and processes especially do inform and qualify the evolutionary spirituality, integral spirituality and Peer-to-Peer spirituality movement principles and processes as they are used in our organization.
4.) Any individual of any denomination or organization who understands the principles of peer-to-peer open source spirituality (in depth to follow,) and the materials that they would like to work on or contribute can contribute their spiritual wisdom, ideas and principles to help co-evolve this revolutionary form of spirituality and thereby help expand the scope and usefulness of rapidly expanding global spiritual commons.
5.) Implied in an open source spirituality is the fact that there always will be many different harmonics of spiritual messages and types of spiritual individuals/teachers presenting spiritual wisdom from many different evolutionary, developmental, personal and cultural perspectives. This is exactly as it should be because spiritual wisdom needs to be organized and presented in a digestible manner that is tailored to the differences in individual abilities, learning styles, gender, ethnicity, and personality types as well as differences in religious or cultural backgrounds and psychological developmental perspectives.
6. Open source religion and open source spirituality is a true theological, structural and organizational revolution like none before in the history of religion and spirituality. It has already changed and evolved forward the very definitions of what religion and spirituality can currently be and will commonly be in the future. It will not just naturally evolve current religious and spiritual organizations toward creating more open source denominations, but will also naturally evolve current religious and spiritual organizations toward creating more open source churches, temples and mosques for those sections of their congregations ready now or soon to be ready for this new evolutionary face of religion and spirituality birthed from and for the 21st century internet information age. This theological, structural and organizational revolution in religion and spirituality is so empowering and appropriate to our shrinking world that any denomination that fails to take note of its evolutionary emergence and make appropriate internal adjustments will steadily watch there members leave to go to religious and spiritual organizations that have incorporated open source religion and open source spirituality principles.
For more detailed information about the spiritual working principles of the open source part of an open source spirituality and open source religion, click here. For more detailed information about the administrative working principles of the open source part of an open source spirituality and open source religion, click here.
There is Much more to Learn About Open Source Spirituality for the Curious and Online Students
If you would like to learn more about the following specific things because you are curious or need to know why and all the details such as, creating a global spiritual commons and its relationship to the open source spirituality process, all of the peer-to-peer co-creational process principles for building an open source spirituality collaboration and, how you can begin participating in or contributing to the open source and spirituality process, click here.
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