Scripture
The generalized term Scripture is used to refer to religious texts from any religion. The intent is to avoid reliance on specific Judeo-Christian references that only represent half of the world's population. When speaking of universalist ideas it helps to make them as universal as possible.
Scripture and Doctrine
Scripture is the foundation of Doctrine, but Doctrine can also include interpretations and traditions introduced by religious leaders and institutions over the centuries. Doctrine can also refer to non-religious codifications of belief.
Secular and Progressive people have been reluctant to define their own doctrine, fearing it will become dogma and undermine their commitment to science and reason. This has hampered efforts to rally around any holistic common cause.
Promise Versus Reality
One of the uses of scripture is to serve as an authoritative guide to personal ethics. When many of these texts were written centuries or even millennia ago, that may have actually been the case. However, modern technology, democracy, and capitalism require many specific ethical commandments not included in most religion's top ten.
In order to use ancient scripture as the basis for modern and future life choices, a significant amount of interpretation must be made, and a lot of useful information is left out.
A user-friendly scripture would provide a plain guide to modern democratic capitalist ethics that is easy to understand for people that just want answers, and all of the necessary background information from science and philosophy for those that want to dive deeper. It should also be self-correcting to allow for the latest science and evidence-based best practices to be included. The wiki platform is far superior to the book for such a work.
Wikipedia is the Modern Scripture of Science
Wikipedia has become the trusted reference for human knowledge that everyone knows and refers to whenever they need answers. As such, it is filling many of the cultural roles of scripture in the modern age.
Divinely Inspired
Scripture said to be the word of god, and its authority and people's trust in it are based on that belief. In an age where fewer people believe in the supernatural, and even fewer believe that deities literally give dictation, it is no longer possible for anyone to say that god spoke to them and create new scripture that can gain more than a cult following. The last period when this was possible was the late 1800s, when many universalist movements were formed, as well as the foundations for modern charismatic Christianity and new age paganism.
A society that has widespread science education can only put their trust in that which has been peer reviewed. The wiki platform systematizes this by allowing many authors to contribute, edit, and correct the platform of record. While we understand that obscure topics may be manipulated, any page representing a legitimate field of study will have dozens of experts who moderate the contributions and ensure they reflect the current scientific consensus backed by the preponderance of available evidence. Many studies have proven this process to create a reference that is more accurate than any other that humanity has produced. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Wikipedia represents the collective consciousness of humanity, not just the stories and perspectives of one individual or religion. As such, it is the only thing that can provide the same level of trust that divine inspiration used to inspire.
One Book For All Your Questions
Anyone who has read the books of the old testament can plainly see that it was an attempt to write down all of the useful rules for dealing with life in the bronze age. Many religious adherents will tell you that their scripture contains answers for any important question you have regarding your life choices. In a society as big and complex as ours, this information can no longer be contained in a single book. It needs a platform. Wikipedia is the closest thing we have to a single work that contains trusted answers to any relevant question you may have about modern life, the universe, and everything.
Canon That Everyone Can Reference
One of the key roles scripture plays in culture is to create a common set of stories and metaphors that are known by all the members of that society and can be referenced as a shorthand for complex concepts.
By creating a central platform that any author publishing online can link to for reference material, background information, etc., Wikipedia fills this role of scripture in facilitating online discourse. It is the only platform you can trust to be accurate, authoritative, and up-to-date, for the links not to break after some future update, and that trust will be widely shared by your audience regardless of their politics, religion, or culture.
John 3:16 is powerful because for hundreds of years it has referenced the same concept. The importance of not changing the links cannot be understated.
What It Doesn't Do
The main thing Wikipedia doesn't do is provide a "CliffsNotes" version that can be easily digested by anyone who just needs to understand the big picture without having to get into all the details. This is how most people approach life, and traditional scripture still interfaces better with that need for holistic simplicity than anything currently on offer by science. This avoids information overload.
Another thing it can't do is offer an optimistic perspective on the universe, which is another key component of spirituality and scripture. Wikipedia will tell you all the facts about the universe in a neutral and unbiased tone. There needs to be a version that tells the same story, but injected with wonder, joy, and enthusiasm for life! Scripture is inspirational, and so is the story of science if you tell it the right way.
It also doesn't provide rituals, explain the meaning of life, or provide many of the other aspects of a complete philosophy, religion, or belief system as scripture would.
metaculture attempts to fulfill these additional roles of secular scripture by creating a digestible companion wiki that provides the holistic and optimistic perspective that basic science cannot, and focuses on the key information needed to make effective life choices.
But Nobody Reads Anymore
We're probably going to have to do something about that if we want to continue having a functional society. But in the meantime, embedded videos can serve as a substitute for those who have lost the ability to focus on squiggly lines on a page.