Here is a link to Jim Gilliam's 6 June 2011 Personal Democracy Forum talk: The Internet is My Religion
This is a compelling story, grippingly well-told. Mr Gilliam explains why the Internet is his religion, and why perhaps it should be ours, too. His is a powerfully moving and poignant tale. I will never complain about anything ever again. You really need to invest 10 minutes and listen to Mr Gilliam's story in his own words.
"God is what happens when humanity is connected."
I do feel uncomfortable with Mr Gilliam's assertion that we are not merely co-creators, but when connected we are The Creator. Here, I think he goes too far. We may look at religion as a flawed human institution incapable of offering an uncorrupted understanding of, and unfettered access to, the Divine. We may marvel at the wonders wrought by strangers connected via the Internet. We could speculate that G-d is the Ultimate Intelligence and that the Internet is therefore bringing us closer to a full understanding and access. But to suggest that G-d is the figment of 8 billion connected human brains is an intriguing bit of blasphemy.
Which came first, the Internet or the Big Bang?
Hat tip to Cheri
Exactly. I love his story and experience with the positive, life/world-changing connections he made through the Internet (something that some people are too quick to discount, in my opinion); however, his proclamation that WE are The Creator was a strange leap. On the other hand, I wonder how different the world would be if more people of the religious variety viewed themselves as co-creators, rather than mere subjects of Creation?
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