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The Church of Belief Science, established in 2007 in Saint Charles, Missouri, USA, is the first postmodern church based fully on a relationship-focused philosophy known as "social constructivism." Social constructivism is an offshoot of postmodern philosophy that locates and embeds knowledge in relationship systems. Accordingly, understanding of religious experience emerges from interaction of individuals in communities. There are communities of understanding--groups of believers who operate on consensualized truth (consensualities). Belief Science provides a scientific, theoretical, and philosophical understanding of how people come to believe together in such a way that the truth of their community is viewed as "absolute" and unquestionable (whereas outsiders may view a group's truth as relative to the group). Because the Church is grounded on a relationship philosophy, it embraces social and cultural differences and is very tolerant of differing views of groups of believers. The Church motto is, "Many Truths...One Church." But the Church is not only grounded on postmodern relationship-centered philosophy, it is also grounded on twelve ethical principles that direct members in their consensualizing process. The twelve Ethical Canons of the church direct members to be loving, fair, open to learning, optimistic, non-offensive, valuing free religious expression, valuing free religious practice, beneficent (doing good for others), non-maleficent (avoiding harming others), respectful of nature, respectful of life, and responsible in raising and protecting children. The twelve Ethical Canons are described as the exemplification of the "human spirit," the collective conscience that directs and motivates people to fully express their capacity through supportive relationships. People of all backgrounds are welcomed by the Church, as it is a model of tolerance and respect for individuals of diverse backgrounds.

Foundations of The Church of Belief Science
In 2007, Robert Rocco Cottone founded the Church of Belief Science. Cottone is a psychologist, counselor educator, and ethicist. He studied cognitive theories related to belief formation and embraced postmodern philosophy as a means for developing a fully relational model of religion involving both biological relations and social relations. He outlined Belief Science philosophy in two publications, a popular press book entitled, Toward a Positive Psychology of Religion: Belief Science in the Postmodern Era, and a church manual, The Church of Belief Science: A Complete Guide to Philosophy and Practice, Second Edition. The Church of Belief Science philosophy applies postmodern theory (specifically social constructivism) to human relations in a religious context. Cottone provided the postmodern definition of belief--belief is acting with others as if some socially defined concept represents truth. Accordingly, belief is a fully social process. In his religious works, he applied the concept of "consensualities" or "bracketed absolute truths" to explain the many practiced religions, because each religion represents absolute truth within its community of followers. The "brackets" of truth are the boundaries of the group consensus making the truth real within its community of believers. There are no universal absolute truths, and there are no relative truths. Rather there are truths that represent the "absolutes" of a community of believers within a cultural context. This explains why there appear to be many competitive "absolute truths." For Christians, Jesus is God. For Buddhists, the teachings of the Buddha represent truth. For Muslims, Muhammad's works are prophetic. And for Jews, the teaching of the prophets hold weight. The followers of each religion believe (or tend to believe) their religion represents "the only truth" or unquestionable truth. But to people outside the communities, the beliefs held by others are viewed as questionable. By way of contrast, the Church of Belief Science is built on 13 Canons. The first is the concept of "consensualizing" (bracketed absolute truth) which acknowledges that all truths have validity within communities of believers. But Cottone concluded that ethical standards must be accepted in a profession of faith, or beliefs that are potentially harmful to humanity may garner support within a community at the expense of some or all other people. He argued, for example, that ancient religions are based on negative premises (e.g., sin, suffering, castigation, condemnation), and he made the case for a positive philosophy as a foundation for religious practice. The ethical Canons of the Church of Belief Science are 12 ethical principles that define the positive philosophy at the base of Belief Science. The Ethical Canons include: Optimism, Respect for Life, Loving Relations, Respect of Nature, Responsible Parenthood or Guardianship of Children, Free Religious Expression, Free Religious Practice, Non-maleficence, Beneficence, Non-offensiveness, Respect for Learning, and Fairness. Members of the Church simply pledge to live by and uphold the Canons. Several representative quotes from his religion books are: "The judgment day has come, and the judgment is clear. Ancient religions can no longer serve the needs of humanity"; "There is no independence, but only degrees of dependence"; "We are, therefore we think"; "One's relationships are greater than one's self"; "Relationships are everything, and everything is relationship"; "There is no mystery of faith. Faith is people coming to believe together"; there is a "collective conscience--the group ethic that replaces and supersedes the concept of individual conscience"; and finally, "the positive ethic of the human spirit is viewed as contagious--the type of contagion that a positive psychology of religion represents."

Foundational Canon
Belief Scientists consensualize in defining what is understood to be religious truth. Consensualizing is acting with others as if some socially defined concept represents truth. A belief derived by consensualizing becomes true to believers who interact around the defined religious “truth.” (This is the principle of “Consensualizing.” This Canon is the foundational Canon of the Church of Belief Science.)

The Twelve Ethical Canons (the Core Principles of the Human Spirit)

 * One. Optimism. An unyielding faith in the collective human spirit, intelligence, and the collective human drive to understand and to explore the mysteries of life, living, and the universe.
 * Two. Respect for life. Human life is of the highest value. Life begins at conception in a maternal environment or embryonic insertion in a maternal environment—an environment that can bring the human to full fruition.
 * Three. Love. Sharing life with another person in a consensually defined intimate adult loving relationship is of high value. Loving adult partnerships and friendships are encouraged.
 * Four. Responsible parenthood and guardianship. Children are a precious gift. They are to be loved, nurtured, educated, guided, and protected from existing, imminent, or potential harm or exploitation.
 * Five. Free religious practice. Belief Scientists believe in religious freedom, meaning that legal political entities or territories should not limit the freedom of Belief Scientists or others to practice religion.
 * Six. Free religious expression. Belief Scientists believe in unfettered communication and free speech, and they engage in interaction with individuals inside and outside the Church and communicate Church ideals.
 * Seven. Non-maleficence. Evil is that which is destructive of human life, disabling, harmful to or exploitive of children, or restrictive of the freedom to practice the Canons of the Church. Belief Scientists act to avoid evil, or when possible and without offensive action against other humans, to act in a way that will bring evil to an end.
 * Eight. Beneficence. Belief Scientists demonstrate their commitment to the common good by assisting others, especially those in need. The ill and disabled are to be assisted and aided.
 * Nine. Non-offensiveness. Belief Scientists do not partake of offensive actions against other human beings. War and fighting are to be avoided. Only acts of self-defense are acceptable, and only then for the protection of self, loved ones, and one’s lived territory.
 * Ten. Respect for learning. Education and study, scientific, philosophical, religious, or otherwise, is valued and encouraged at the earliest ages.
 * Eleven. Fairness. Belief Scientists treat others as they would want to be treated themselves. Belief Scientists do not discriminate on the basis of race, culture, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, human genetic or structural modification, or disability.
 * Twelve. Respect for nature. Belief Scientists are conservative of natural resources. They act to enhance the human condition in ways that are not destructive of the environment.

The Creed of Belief Science
"We believe and pledge to live by and uphold the Canons of the Church of Belief Science. We believe in love, in living life to its fullest, and in caring for those in need. We act to prevent evil in the form of disease, aggressive harmful acts, harm to children, and barriers to free religious expression. We are a community that shares ideas and the fruits of the land. We believe in social and environmental harmony. We come together in communion to rejoice in the good acts that come from our faith. We value understanding through many ways of believing. But most of all, we believe that faith comes from sharing our most profound understanding or our experiences together. By this pledge, we unite as a community of faith."

Church Corporate Structure and Purpose
The Church was incorporated in Missouri in 2007. There are three corporate directors whose role is to ensure that Church funds are used for the benefit of the Church, its members, and its causes. Corporate directors take no income from the Church. The Church is non-hierarchical in its structure, meaning there is no central decision authority over the daily activities of members. Members are free to practice in a number of ways, ranging from individual practice similar to Eastern traditions to more full Assembly (congregational) involvement classic of Western churches. The Church administration is charged with four responsibilities, including (1) disseminating information and educating the public on the Canons of the Church and its doctrine; (2) certifying women and men as "priests," or teachers of the doctrine who may oversee Assembly activities and rituals; (3) certifying Assemblies as meeting Church doctrinal standards; and (4) identifying and registering members of the Church and facilitating their interaction. Priests of the Church operate freely and may not be employed by the Church, although they must follow Church doctrine and they must not misrepresent the Church. The Church adminstration does reserve the right to nullify a person's membership, priesthood, or the certification of Church Assemblies for breaches of Church doctrine or serious ethical or legal infractions.

The Practice of Belief Science
Belief Scientists practice in one of three ways: 1. Individual Practice with Linkage to the Belief Science Community. A member commits to the Canons of the Church and formally joins the Church. He or she would then practice Belief Science by following the Canons, with regular contact with other members through electronic or personal interactions. The member would not be actively participating in activities of an Assembly except electronically. The member would regularly recite the Creed of Belief Science and would practice the Centering (meditative) activity, designed to help members focus on relationships of significance in a positive way. A mentor would be assigned to help the individual develop personally and spiritually, consistent with the interest of the member. Some individuals equate this form of practice with Eastern traditions.

2. Full Assembly Involvement in an Assembly (Electronic or Physical) Aligned with Religious Interests. A member commits to the Canons of the Church and formally joins the Church. He or she then joins or forms an Assembly consistent with his or her religious interests, such as in the study of Christ, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, Atheism/Agnosticism, Scientism, Naturalism, or Comparative Religions, as examples. Each assembly has a focus. Members would meet in a physical space (or by electronic means) at least monthly. A priest would oversee Assembly activities and would be elected from members of a new Assembly (to start the educational process for the priesthood).

3. Belief Science membership with Participation in the Activities and Practices of Other Religions. A member commits to the Canons of the Church and formally joins the Church. The member attends services of another religion or church, without formal commitment to the rules and beliefs of the other Church. For example, a Belief Scientist in the Study of Christ's teachings may actively attend a Christian Church's services, become involved in that Church's activities, but still maintains allegiance to the Canons of Belief Science. When questioned, however, the Belief Scientist responds that he or she is a Belief Scientist. Belief Scientists do not recite creeds of other religions. This practice option is chosen by those who have strong connection to a specific religious tradition (by family tradition, for example), but who have doctrinal or personal concerns with some or many of the religion's beliefs or practices. Belief Scientists act as good citizens when involved with other churches and do not break the rules of the other church (for example, taking communion at a Catholic Church would be unacceptable). Belief Scientists may contribute to another church, but they are asked also to contribute time, money, or effort to the Church of Belief Science.

Membership
Although the Church of Belief Science is of historical significance as the first postmodern church built completely on social constructivism philosophy, it is yet to establish a significant membership. Cottone's founding publication (Toward a Positive Psychology of Religion ), published in 2011, is a significant chronological marker in the Church's development, and the recency of the publication reflects the Church's infancy. The Church administration reported it began monitoring Church membership in 2012 and reported members in South Africa and in the United States in Missouri, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Florida.

Books on Belief Science
Cottone, R. R. (2012). "The Church of Belief Science: A complete guide to philosophy and practice, Second Edition." Published by and retrieved at www.Smashwords.com/books/view/160607.

Cottone, R. R. (2011). “Toward a positive psychology of religion: Belief science in the postmodern era.” Winchester, UK: John Hunt Publishing.

Cottone, R. R. (2008). “The Church of Belief Science: A complete guide to philosophy and practice.” Cottleville, MO: The Church of Belief Science.