Ever since the vaccine began to be talked about, I was asking God what I was to be doing. What was my role in the shifting landscape now before me? I not only won’t take it, I can’t take it based on Health Canada warnings due to being an allergic asthmatic with some foods capable of causing anaphilactic shock, and I’ve experienced that once so far with penicillin. So I’ve self-isolated due to my allergies and the fact everyone around me can’t tell a cough from a cold, flu, hay fever or covid. It’s all covid now, even to 911 operators when my son had to get me to the hospital in October for an asthma attack I couldn’t calm down. Of course hiding in a hole is of no use to anyone, so what was I to be doing to help out not only myself, but others in my situation?
The idea began to percolate that Christians, and those who can’t or won’t take the vaccine, are going to need to build their own infrastructure and supply chains to keep each other viable and functioning if vaccine passports become a thing. I began wondering who I could share this with, and finally wrote it out longhand to a fellow prayer warrior who used to run a Christian businessmen’s group where I live. He’s the manager of our local Habitat for Humanity ReStore outlet, with no time to run it anymore, but when I wrote out my email I didn’t know that yet. I process through my fingers, so the email just got longer and longer as I brainstormed how this could look both on and offline.

Basically, the online version would have methods where people could share what they have in the way of useful-if-not-rudimentary skills, abilities, talents, goods or services they could offer to those local to them, or in a broader regional or global manner. If someone posted they needed these services, an automated notification would go out to those offering, that someone needed what they offered in their area. Offline, Christian business groups could print off these directories and hand them out to those in their area so that offline, there was a way to know who had what. I was saying that someone with deep pockets would be required to set up the server farms and build our own online ecosystem much like how OurFreedomBook is doing things with their social network, yt replacement, etc.

A few days went by, then I got thinking about my own capabilities as a webmaster, and the fact that while it isn’t fast, I have my own hosting account at a company in Manitoba and have had that account since 2001, it holds my business websites, author website, sites for my daughter’s ventures, a hockey newsletter, etc. Seeing as my author website is done up in wordpress in multisite format, I thought I’d see if I could build anything like the above thoughts, in wordpress.

I think I’ve managed something similar without the automated notifications. It uses a multivendor plugin for woocommerce so that people can set up their own bazaar tables (virtually) where each skill or ability is a “product” so to speak, whether free like how your neighbour helps you from down the street, or fee such as walking into your neighbour’s store downtown. The vendor set up allows for location to be set and I’ve configured it so you can type in whatever is deemed safe for you when helping each other out locally or regionally.

This vendor system is attached to a basic social media system known to the wordpress community as BuddyPress. An add-on makes it possible to turn groups into fan pages in the group settings, so that vendors can have fan pages and groups if they wish. I’ve set up the groups so anyone can make them at this time.

I’ve added an events system that I’ll have to write up a few FAQ’s for on the buddypress end of things as a few features will have to be added or tweaked by the admin at point of confirming on the back end, as they are easier to add there than on the front end. But the events system will be useful in announcing gatherings, arranging meetings, etc.

Meetings will be capable online using a system built into a wordpress plugin that creates zoom-like meetings with many of the features we all know from zoom, but without the added cost.

A learning system is added, so that anyone who teaches a course can set up their course in the site and offer it for free or fee as they see fit. The system is very basic, but can be added to or tweaked for various teaching purposes.

I’ve called this test site: The Ixsthus Catacombs.

The site isn’t fast, but if enough people like it and are willing to donate to it’s continuance, I might be able to upgrade my hosting package to something better suited to this task.

The whole intention is to bring people together who have, who need, who can deliver, in a way much like the Early Church but in modern times.