The Peoples Club Part 1 - A Draft
Today I ask myself the same question I ask after every tiring slow work day.
Do I sell everything I own and disappear the fuck out of this place, go on a walkabout or some other such white man find himself adventure.
I hide from the news cycle these days, not because I fear it, just because it’s boring. The 24 hour cycle shows us time a time again a revolving slideshow of natural disaster, celebrity gossip and political outrage. We are desensitised to caring about any of it by its sheer need to doggedly inform.
I am not a religious man, nor am I spiritual. So then today I ask myself dear brothers and sisters:
What meaning is left for the rest of us that are incapable of blind adherence to outdated doctrine?
The main thing I have heard that those without religious affiliation lack is a greater sense of community. No while I realise that the data saying this may be a result of religions pretending to do social science, I do feel like there is some merit to this. Those with a lesser sense of community are at greater risk of having a smaller support network and therefore feeling more isolated and lost in a time when such a state is becoming worryingly universal.
So then if we were to take core concepts of religion and apply them in a secular sense, what would it look like. There are a lot of things that would need to be ruled out from the get go.
No thousands of years of history.
Scientology may have been able to pop up fairly recently, but beyond that almost all religions have their basis back before people knew the world was round. A true modern secular religion would not have this justification from historical permanence to justify its existence.
No fear based membership
All the best shitty religions of the world have some level of hate for the unwashed masses, the unconverted and the sexually diverse.
No god
I mean I feel like this goes without saying, but yeah, no god. There is no great higher power, there is no direction, there is no meaning, beyond that which we make for ourselves that which circumstance gives us, and that which we choose for ourselves.
No Illogical outdated societal rules
Religion is at its core a way to convey and control basic rules throughout the lives of the people. But so many churches hate so many things for reasons so lost to time or obscure and outdated bigotry from ancient foreign lands that anyone who is adherent enough to follow them can only be considered some craven zealot that any civilised society could only cast out.
So then from my four points we can drill down the format of religion: The creation of a ruleset and the use of a deity and fictionalised narrative to enforce it.
How to Re this Format into a force for good?
Membership - To take a page from the Judeo-inclined among us, This group would be an exclusive one. One with a hard journey to get in, and serious stakes for those who are in.
Then a People’s Club would be formed.
ENTRY - If you have a friend that is a member, they are allowed to give you the hint if they think you would be club material and put you on the path. They are not allowed to vouch for you. The hint they give you identifies them as the person that put you on the path. A member must then be found in the wild, you must find them, and convince them to vouch for you, how you do so is up to you. Once they are willing to vouch for you, they can bring you to a meeting at the club. Once you arrive at the club you must advise the club who gave you the hint and that information will be recorded for posterity.
ACCEPTANCE - Your first visit to the club will require you speak with all present members. They will give you time, respect and conversation. You will be shown what the club offers, what its members do at meetings, and you will be welcomed. You will be on your best behaviour and so will the club. Members will not be added often, but membership should be assured to most who visit.
DENIAL - You will become a member, because if you do not then the club will lose two members. The one who gave you the hint, and the one who vouched for you will be excommunicated if you do not pass muster. The friend had, and the friend won will be removed with you if you fail to impress.
MEMBERSHIP - You’re continued membership is not assured, you must successfully bring a new member into the fold once a year. Through this you earn your right to remain, as well as ensuring the survival and growth of the club.
STATUS - While the club has a flat structure, tenure is respected, those who have grown the club by the most people, and held place for the longest have earned the respect of their peers. They are good judges of character, and have proven their worth, dedication and decorum. They are not above reproach for their actions, and are still subject to all the same rules. They are those who have the most lines travelling to and from them, both in hints given and people vouched for, their increased value is an increase in responsibility.
FOUNDERS - While the club has a flat structure, the founders are respected above all others. They started the club, they created the rules, they started the movement. A founder is the only member that cannot be simply removed for breaking the rules. A founder can only be removed after a clear and blatant transgression, and even then only if the two other founders deem it necessary. From there the same applies for the second founder, though that requires the consensus of the third founder and the two most tenured members. To eject the final founder, the entire club must be in consensus that the founder committed a transgression sufficient. No single transgression is sufficient to automatically eject a founder, a discussion must be had with the transgressed founder present.
TRANSGRESSIONS - Should a member commit an action, within the club, or out in the world that is sufficiently contravening to the morality or dignity of the club, then that member shall be given the right to explain themself before the club. A discussion must be had. Should the actions of the individual be deemed inexcusable, then that member is ejected from the club. Along with them go the one who gave them the hint and the one who vouched for them.
HOSTING - Turns will be taken to host meetings, where a member assumes the role of bartender. They serve the drinks, they play the role of the guide, assuring conversation flows and the group enjoys the meeting. The host is the most honoured role in the club on their night, as they are the silent party who dictates the flow. Failure to be present and host on your night is the worst transgression possible and results in instant excommunication. The host can come to the table with a format of their choosing, however the success of their actions is theirs to ensure.
LEAVING - If a member wishes to resign from the club on good terms, they may. Responsibility for members they have hinted or vouched for will be assigned to those within the club will be transferred to those deemed worthy.
CONVERSATION - No topic is taboo, no discussion off the table, but decorum must be upheld. If a conversation cannot be had without members coming to a head then heated members must recuse themselves or otherwise bow out of the conversation. A failure to maintain composure is frowned upon. A continued inability to do so will be seen as a transgression.
HUMOUR - The club is a place of humour, that must remain true above all things.
THE CLUBROOM - The host must ensure the security and standard of the clubroom. On their night of hosting, they must ensure the cleanliness and order of the establishment. Failure to do so is one of the highest transgressions of all.
THE RULES - The rules must be perfect, should any holes be discovered in the tenets of the club, they must be rectified by a founder. If no founder remains, then the next most tenured member has the honour.
You might notice something about these rules, while yes they imply a tone of culture, they do not dictate content, there is no unifying god narrative to this church, beyond that of the prestige the members give it. The sanctity comes from ensuring one’s continued membership. Because once you are out you are out… FOR GOOD.
Logan
