so, some of you who were at the sacramento nywc got handed a little card from some poeple called “the citizens of virtue.” here’s the dealio: there’s a massive ARG (alternate reality game) that’s been developed around rob bell’s new book, jesus wants to save christians. i’ve seen the framework for the game, and it’s stunning. complex, creative, crazy. there are so many levels and easter eggs and embedded messages and stuff, in a WIDE variety of websites and other places (even in/on the book!).

here’s some info about the whole thing:

The ARG went live last Wednesday, October 8th. The second Virtual Virtue—Patience—went live yesterday. COV virtue volunteers were active at three events last week—NYWC in Sacramento, Catalyst in Atlanta, and the Passion Conference in Vancouver, BC. Nearly 20,000 of the COV business cards were distributed announcing all seven virtues—temperance, patience, chastity, kindness, humility, diligence, and charity.

What is Citizens of Virtue?
The Citizens of Virtue game is an alternate reality game promoting the book Jesus Wants To Save Christians by Rob Bell and Don Golden. The game highlights the battle for the soul of Christianity that is playing itself out on a national stage right now.

What’s an alternate reality game?
An alternate reality game (ARG) is an immersive experience where the entire internet can band together to immerse themselves in a story, solve puzzles, and interact with the real world. ARGs have the unique characteristic of pretending they are real. Part of the fun of an ARG is to figure out what it is and how you interact with it.

The goal of the game is for people to have thoughtful fun, to participate together in the immersive experience to solve the puzzles, to engage with the overall message of JESUS WANTS TO SAVE CHRISTIANS by Rob Bell and Don Golden, and to good in the real world if they choose to. The end of the game takes place when the players free The Seven (held captive by the Citizens of Virtue), bring down the COV organization, and good triumphs over evil.

There’s a couple of ways to get into the game:
1. Send an email to [email protected] and get an automated reply and insight into how you can participate.
2. Visit jesuswantstosavechristians.com and click on Help the Seven
3. Visit citizensofvirtue.com to discover clues embedded in the videos and throughout the home page.

seriously, this thing is nuts.