Kopimism, the file-sharing religion, looking for followers and legal status in US

 

Last year, Kopimism (or Missionerande Kopimistsamfundet), the world’s first file-sharing religion created with the help of The Pirate Bay, was officially recognized by the Swedish government. Having gained a number of followers across Europe, the Missionary Church of Kopimism is taking a page from Christian missionaries and proselytizing the “copy and paste” creed on American shores.

First United Church of Kopimism was founded by Christopher Carmean in the U.S. and is now looking for legal status from the U.S. government. It seems unlikely, with the constant stream of online piracy (internet censorship) bills and trade agreements such as SOPA, PIPA, TPP and ACTA. As puritanical, corporate and litigious as the United States has become in the last century, this should be a tall order.

Howvever, one wishes Carmean and his fellow American Kopimists well in their endeavor. They have every right to religious recognition as the various other religions. The difference, of course, is that unlike the Judeo-Christian religions, Kopimism isn’t a fiction. It believes in things readily observable in reality: file-sharing, copy and paste, remixing, etc.

It’s also worth noting that last month at the Belgrade Share conference, the Kopimist religion ordained its very first marriage. It was seen as a pivotal moment by the Kopimist faithful. The presiding Kopimist priest even donned an Anonymous Guy Fawkes mask for the nuptials (the photo of which can be seen above).

As the Kopimist website observed about the marriage:

So at last, it was unavoidable.

The first kopimist wedding took place this weekend in Belgrade at the Share conference. A woman from Romania and a man from Italy have engaged in a holy Kopimist act.

We are very happy today. Love is all about sharing. A married couple share everything with each other.

Hopefully, they will copy and remix some DNA-cells and create a new human being. That is the spirit of Kopimism. Feel the love and share that information. Copy all of its holiness.

The missionary leader of the Church of Kopimism, Isak, attended as a witness durring the wedding.

One has to appreciate the call to copy and remix DNA cells via a bit of the old in-out, in-out. It puts everything in a bit of perspective. DNA coding is spliced and recoded into new versions and so on through the ages.

The Catholic Church simply cannot match this sort of beauty and satire. Which is reason enough, to my mind, for legal recognition here in the states.

o