The Lost Jump Gate

According to the myth of the lost jump gate, certain individuals will receive a set of three messages that combine to form directions to a dilapidated jump gate. Inside, they find a wall of messages from others who've received the same cryptic messages.
Few people have heard this myth. Fewer believe it, and fewer still claim to have left their own message on that wall. But enough have reported the same sequence of events that it's hard to say for sure that it's not real.

Deep Space Mystery

The myth of the lost or wandering jump gate dates back nearly two hundred years. It involves a jump gate, massive space structures formerly used to teleport ships, that somehow teleports itself. Attempts at an explanation always leave some portion of the mystery unsolved. More important than answers, however, is that every person affected by this myth has found it a life-changing experience.

The Story

It starts with a message, followed by two others across a variable length of time. They might be delivered directly or stumbled upon by chance. Often they're digital, like a text or email, but can also be a physical note or page. The recipient is always someone struggling with feeling lost, aimless, and isolated.
When combined, the three messages become directions to a point in space. The location changes but always leads to the same burnt-out jump gate. The crumbling atrium is the most intact portion. A wall draws people toward it, containing carved messages from all who've been there before.
Most describe seeing this wall as a spiritual experience. While in front of it, they feel a profound connection to every person across time and space. No longer lost, but seen, loved, and accepted. Even when they leave and the feeling fades, they remain changed by it.

I got a second message today. I'm afraid to get the third. I've never left home before, how can I go flying across the galaxy?
I've been on the forums, there are people who'd help me get there. What if I did go flying across the galaxy? What if I've never left home because I never had a reason to?

— Diary of someone lost

The Answers

If we accept that the messages and the gate are real, which few people do, the best explanation anyone has offered is that there's an organization behind the entire charade. They have a ship that can tow the gate to new locations, with hidden cameras to know when to move it. They likely use a VI to scour the internet for targets and their contact information.

Maybe it's ghosts, maybe it's gods, maybe it's this one really twisted family fucking with us all from some asteroid somewhere.
Who cares? If it helps people, why do we need to explain it?

— Message from someone Found

This fails in a few key ways, however. It's unlikely they could move the gate without ever being seen, there's no answer for the paper notes, and most importantly, this has been going on longer than any human can survive.
Several people would be needed to run such a prank, and given humanity's propensity for sharing secrets, it's remarkably unlikely an organization of that size would persist for this long with no evidence left behind. But if we accept that, then what other answers are we left with?
Could the gate be haunted? Could a True AI have survived? Could it perhaps be the Great Mother reaching out to Her creations? Or is not having an answer something of the point?

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Lost & Found

Those who've received these messages have a small community internet forum. They call recipients "Lost", and once they've visited the gate, they're "Found".
The Found offer support to the Lost, and even transit for when Lost have received their third message. There's few enough Lost each year that such services are reasonable to provide for free.
Many Found also end up more spiritual than they were before, though not always to the point of joining any particular church they weren't previously associated with.

Public Perceptions

Most people don't believe any part of the tale, especially since it's been faked in the past. People have lied about receiving messages or sent fake ones that lead to nothing.
Others, particularly those who've crewed ships to the gate, believe the story is true but must have a mundane explanation.
The Lost & Found themselves are few in number, and they don't tend to talk about their experience without being asked. They know what they've experienced, even if others have doubts.