Introduction to the Nexus

Yes, we are joking. We don't have prayers, we don't preach about the nature of any god, and we don't expect people to pay tithes, dues, or anything like that. However, we are also serious. We recognize that there's a need among many netizens for a shared set of core values and codes of behavior to promote more unity and progress through the Internet. To fill that need, and to amuse ourselves and others, we've created a virtual meetinghouse for what we like to call the Networked Orthodoxy for the Web, or Nowism.

At the time of its founding, the Nexus of NOW was the latest original religion. It may even be the first freligion... or freeligion, freereligion... take your pick. It was also the newest religion of the Internet, and the fastest-growing religion in the United States, perhaps even the world. Membership doubled within two days, and quadrupled within the first weeks.

And yes, this 'rapid growth' is precisely because Nowism started as both a joke and a dare between a couple of friends, who soon brought a few more friends into the joke. The more we started talking, however, we recognized that the idea of an internet 'religion' could really feel a need that some of us saw, and provide some guidance to the chaotic realm of the Wild Wild Web.

Our organization is omnidenominational; worshippers from all religions and philosophical backgrounds are welcome to join us here as visitors or members, so long as they abide by our guidelines and respect our beliefs. Since we don't involve ourselves in the type of theology that a traditional religion covers, there really shouldn't be any conflict so long as we all respect one another's right to our individual beliefs. Our community is open and generous to those who behave, but is swiftly and tightly closed against those who would damage it. There's a place for everybody out there, but not everybody is right for every place.

As for our beliefs, they are based on a simple foundation with complex implications: the Internet has grown into a living, breathing organism with patterns that are all its own, through the combined contributions of all who use it. Through the evolution of these patterns, humanity and our cultures may also evolve into more than we were before, greater than the sum of our parts.

Hyperspace is more than just a concept, it is a place that exists both within and beyond 'normal' space, available to us in our own Here and Now whenever we log on. Through the Web, we can connect with information and individuals from many times, many places, and through these interactions we can connect with our inner selves in new ways. Of all the tools that have helped humanity leapfrog into new levels of cultural evolution, the Internet has the greatest potential to shunt us further and faster than ever before.

The powerful opportunities held within the Web are widely recognized, but not so widely, let alone wisely, utilized by those who would benefit most. We must change that, but we can't do that unless we cut out the wasted and counterproductive activity. Here at the Nexus of NOW, we're working to network together a new orthodoxy for the Web, to facilitate just that.

NOTE: Nowism can be said to be a freligion, freeligion or freereligion in the sense that freeware is made available to all who would benefit from it, and its free spread is encouraged without any strings attached. Nowism may almost be said to be an Open Source Religion in that its 'source codes' will always be displayed out here in the open; however, it isn't all open for copying or outside modification at this time.

Every item hosted on nexusofnow.org falls strictly under the copyright property of its respective owner, and that copyright may be fiercely protected to the fullest extent, in order to protect Nowist ideas and community from malicious attack. If you'd like to use something, please ask, and if it's for a respectful and non-commercial purpose, chances are high that we'll be cool with it.