Open Source and the Catholic Church
6 March 2010
No CommentThe Catholic Church in Rome runs on open-source Linux. Take a look at this photo:
Not sure who to credit for this photo found at http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/3070/dsc0310so1.jpg
This is probably not a coincidence. These two philosophies have similar components: The first is the Church’s declaration on “Ethics in Internet”:
“Cyberspace ought to be a resource of comprehensive information and services available without charge to all, and in a wide range of languages. Public institutions have a particular responsibility to establish and maintain sites of this kind.”
Compare this with elements of the Open Source Initiative defining the licensing of open source software:
“The license shall not require a royalty or other fee for such sale…The license must not discriminate against any person or group of persons.”
This is not to conclude that the Church and the OSI see eye-to-eye on everything. As organizations they have different ends and goals; the former is religious and the latter is technological. The OSI does not discriminate what the technology is used for (something they see as a good), and the Catholic Church is a proponent for the technology only being used for good and not evil.
I think the Church has it right here, and more people should take notice. When you imagine futuristic “Big Brother” scenarios in which morally evil powers have control over our day-to-day lives and transferral of the truth, it is obvious that the Catholic Church wants no part in this. Open communication is the only way to discover the truth.
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