The 2011 contest attracted over 900 entries via the Huffington Post’s comments section, of which over 100 were chosen to be featured; the 2013 iteration attracted a grand total of 3.
You’ve got the long hair, the nice bushy beard, and lots of beliefs, but you don’t have the 2.2 billion adherents worldwide. Or perhaps you’re chubby and like to sit cross-legged, but no one is making statues of you. Or maybe you’re a mediocre sci-fi writer that wants people speaking your psuedoscience.
Well now you can be the next Jesus, the next Buddha, or even the next L. Ron Hubbard. Sign up now to create-your-own religion. You name it, write down the beliefs, rituals, and holidays. We will then post the best submissions on our site and allow you to compete for followers.
Most of the reader-submitted entries could be most positively described as whimsical; many are silly, cynical and/or just a bit lacking in imaginative verve. Some offer genuinely plausible religious perspectives in whimsical disguise, conceptually reminiscent of that time Bryan Cranston walked the floor of the San Diego ComicCon incognito by wearing an ultra-realistic mask of his own face. All are worth at least skimming to demonstrate the (potential/imaginal) breadth of new religious perspective.
Perhaps we need more Create Your Own Religion Contests …
