quite ominous.... It is a well known fact that our virtual text based lives that are predominant on the internet can be as different to the real world lives we live as chalk is to cheese, and for many they use this ability to be who they want to be as a form of release, or as a means of virtually believing they have achieved what they want and 'living the dream'... literally. Due to the diverse nature of the internet a person in Florida, in USA could be connected to a person in Madrid, in Spain, and a person in Birmingham, in the UK, all at the same time. Due to the fact that the internet is quintessentially a timeless, eternal space which is not affected by distance, a person can be who they wish to be. For example, in religious terms, a person could be a Christian on a Sunday, a Jedi on a Monday, a Hindu on a Tuesday... I'm sure you get my point.
This is probably best exemplified through this video i found on Youtube expressing the problems of the issue of identity online...
The non-physicality of the internet enables people to change character, race, gender, age, even beliefs at a click of a button. Does this raise ethical issues for societies which are based on the trusting of people who we have never met before? Are there dangers to this form of communication and ways of interacting with others, whether this be on a theological level or even a social level? Surely, we accept the answer to this question to be a massive YES!
How then does this affect religions which are essentially based on the internet? Religions which are based solely in a virtual context are subjugated to this trust issue and also the timelessness and the ability given to the user to be anyone they want to be, thus creating inherent problems for not only the religion as a whole but also to the believers.
Jedism is no exception to this. As the religion is predominantly based on the internet, it is subjected to the same issues of identity. Also due to the fact that the religion is mainly concerned with the creation of a new Jedi identity, the transition of this identity from virtual to physical can be seen to be highly problematic. For example, with a religion such as Jedism there are many people who are speculative of the way of thought concerned with it, and also are willing mock anyone who is concerned with it. Therefore, people would probably be tempted to keep their two identities, their physical and their virtual, completely separate.
Furthermore, as would be likely due to the public nature of the religion, and the internet, it would be likely that people concerned with and the religion as a whole would be subjected to ridicule through non understanding, and the common misconception that the religion is actually nothing to do with the Star Wars version of Jedism, and is in fact a method by which they have adopted the core principles of this phenomenon and people have adopted this into their everyday lives.
Therefore, identity on the internet is a very contentious thing. There are people who will pretend to be someone else, people who have separate identities for whatever medium they are using. Therefore is it possible to ever truly know someone on the internet? Is it ever plausible to be able to trust a person that one meets in the virtual environment? Does this create distinctive problems for not only cyber religion, but also religions who are now becoming associated with the internet? in that does it alter the true nature of religion, the community aspect and the ability to 'love thy neighbor'? i would like evoke you to think about this, the next time you are looking at religion online, or could this paranoia create an adverse effect for religious belief? Ill leave that question with you...
As always... May the force be with you!
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