Contract type: part time

Contract duration: one year

Time commitment: 4–5 hours per week (varies)

Location: global

Number of positions: up to ten

Category: religious work

Background: I have started a religion (hereafter capitalized as the Religion) and am looking for apostles to develop and spread it with me.

Together we will teach the followers to adopt these beliefs:

“The universe is a creation of my unconscious mind.”

2. “The meaning of that universe is found through understanding the minds of others.”

These beliefs are neither provable nor particularly revolutionary — their derivatives are readily found across self-help literature. However, if applied correctly, the tenets create an intimate bond between the believer and the world, promote constant presence and curiosity (which engender discipline and efficiency) and instil a focus on others which has a strong correlation with confidence and happiness.

However, to reap benefits from these axioms people must actually believe in them; not find them agreeable, inspiring or useful — believe in them. And this is the task we set out to achieve.

Why

The reality in which we live is generated by people who are driven. Entrepreneurs building Moon rockets who will see their dream materialise or die trying, narcissistic politicians who know no shame, women’s rights activists who’ve just had enough and fear nothing anymore, good or bad, these people shape the destinies of others.

Too few good people are driven. They are considerate. They see both sides of the coin. They are respectful of others. They are balanced. They don’t necessarily believe the dominant narratives, but don’t challenge them much either.

They are not without ambition, of course. They possess general altruistic urges to “do something,” but their dreams are not of the hypnotic kind that cause tunnel vision. Good people “wouldn’t mind” more than “must.” When they experience moments of inspiration and epiphanies the effects don’t last.

If good people are also educated then they believe in the scientific method, in testing hypotheses, in accepting the ambiguity without artificial crutches. They are smart, perfectly rounded, reasonable, and as a consequence have no mission.

The Religion will give them something irrational to believe in — a spark for their engines. It will be a small nudge that will do wonders for their determination, discipline, sense of mission and overall happiness.

Organization:

In its mature iteration the Religion aims to become the most dominant belief system in the world. It will spread into the gap being left behind by conventional religions, a gap currently filled by various contemporary pseudo-cults, such as the cult of Apple, the celebrity cult or the cult of the body.

We will arrive there through curated open source development, trial and error, a constant modification of our beliefs, practices, iconography and message, so as to find the mix that works best.

Open source religion isn’t a new concept. It involves a vibrant community that proposes changes to the doctrine or external realities that necessitate it, and a core team that steers. Think Linux; think the Catholic Church.

Make no mistake: there will be nothing reasonable or sensible to the beliefs we will develop and the ceremonies we will adopt. This is crucial — rather than be a nice to have, the Religion will require a leap of will, a reason-driven suspension of reason, a willing submission to beliefs that are unprovable and irrational daily rituals that are on par with those other religions employ. This is the only way for a religion to propagate.

The Religion will beat other religions because it will be up-front about its beliefs being unprovable (so it will attract people with more self respect and a stronger will), it will strip away illogical traditions and deity worship (so it will attract smarter people), and it won’t require observing any sort of deference to a potentially corrupted hierarchy (so it will attract people who are moral). Compared to other religions, the Religion will have a vastly greated proportion of adherents with a do / create mentality than a receive / follow mentality.

Duties:

Your duties will include, but not be limited to the following:

Redaction of canonical texts

Developing imagery, oral histories, rituals, symbols and physical spaces for maximum impact

Developing tactics for spreading the Religion

Participation and leading of ceremonies and rituals

Meticulous observation of beliefs and rituals in personal daily life

Representing the religion in the community, society and the media

Other duties, often mundane and menial, as required

Taking over as coordinator (possibly) after the one-year term expires

Requirements:

You’ll need a clear, instinctive understanding of why a project like this is necessary. Further, you’ll need a demonstrated understanding of the following:

Most belief you (and others) hold are already untestable

Many beliefs you (and others) hold contradict each other

Habit, repetition, ritual and sense of belonging can build new identities and instil beliefs very quickly

You need to:

Be a practically-minded individual with practical skills in psychology, physiology, storytelling, graphic or interior design, etc.

Have felt compassion, triumph and despair in your time

Not have much of an ego anymore, having already more or less received all you want out of life, or being well on your way

Be prepared for the abovementioned leap of will

Compensation:

The position is unpaid, and you will be expected to dedicate 4–5 hours per week to it. All you get is to be at the center of it all, for better or worse. If it goes well, you’ll become exposed to some of the most perceptive, intelligent and forward-looking minds around today. If it goes badly, you might write a book about it.

Application

Here is the application form.

A motivational letter will be required. In it, kindly:

Explain why you are interested in this

Tell how you can contribute practically

Recount two experiences — one where you felt despair, and another where you believed in something profoundly

If you express yourself better in a language other than English feel free to submit in any of the following: French, Spanish, Russian, German, Italian, Indonesian, Portuguese. Selected candidates will be invited to Skype interviews, also available in all of the above languages.

Application deadline: 2016.11.11