@book {2095, title = {The Gospel in Cyberspace. Nurturing Faith in the Internet Age}, year = {2002}, publisher = {Loyola Press}, organization = {Loyola Press}, address = {Chicago }, abstract = {Global culture has gone from the Age of Print to the Era of the Media. The Gospel in Cyberspace maps these changes and offers guidance in navigating the new frontier as it relates to the Church. Authors Babin and Zukowski draw upon their experience in evangelization, catechesis, and media to lead readers through the new technologies}, keywords = {cyberspace, Faith, Gospel, internet}, issn = {9780829417401}, url = {https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Gospel_in_Cyberspace.html?id=E8OOAAAAMAAJ}, author = {Babin, P and Zukowski, A} } @book {337, title = {Christian Cyberspace Companion : A Guide to the Internet and Christian Online Resources}, year = {1995}, publisher = {Baker Books}, organization = {Baker Books}, address = {Grand Rapids}, abstract = {Reference works and guides to on-line services have been appearing throughout the computer world. This is the first specifically designed for Christians who would like to take advantage of online services. Beginners learn how to choose equipment and software, while experienced net surfers are provided with a glossary of cyberspace terms, the news of coming advances, and much more.}, keywords = {Christianity, cyberspace, internet, resources}, url = {http://books.google.com/books/about/Christian_cyberspace_companion.html?id=28BjHCuLquoC}, author = {Baker, J. D.} } @article {107, title = {Cultured technology: Internet \& religious fundamentalism}, journal = {The Information Society}, volume = {21}, year = {2005}, pages = {25-40}, abstract = {In this article we identify four principal dimensions of religious fundamentalism as they interact with the Internet: hierarchy, patriarchy, discipline, and seclusion. We also develop the concept of cultured technology, and analyze the ways communities reshape a technology and make it a part of their culture, while at the same time changing their customary ways of life and unwritten laws to adapt to it. Later, we give examples for our theoretical framework through an empirical examination of ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities in Israel. Our empirical study is based on a data set of 686,192 users and 60,346 virtual communities. The results show the complexity of interactions between religious fundamentalism and the Internet, and invite further discussions of cultured technology as a means to understand how the Internet has been culturally constructed, modified, and adapted to the needs of fundamentalist communities and how they in turn have been affected by it.}, keywords = {control and censorship, cultured technology, cyberspace, digital divide, discipline, hierarchy, localization, online interactions, patriarchy, religious fundamentalism, social capital, virtual communities}, url = {http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.96.170}, author = {Barzilai-Nahon, Karine. and Barzilai, Gadi} } @article {1191, title = {Religion and the Internet: A microcosm for studying Internet trends and implications}, journal = {new media \& society}, volume = {15}, year = {2012}, chapter = {680}, abstract = {This article argues that paying close attention to key findings within the study of religion and the Internet, a subfield of Internet Studies, can enhance our understanding and discussion of the larger social and cultural shifts at work within networked society. Through a critical overview of research on religion online, five central research areas emerge related to social practices, online{\textendash}offline connections, community, identity, and authority online. It is also argued that observations about these themes not only point to specific trends within religious practice online, but also mirror concerns and findings within other areas of Internet Studies. Thus, studying religion on the Internet provides an important microcosm for investigating Internet Studies{\textquoteright} contribution in a wide range of contexts in our contemporary social world.}, keywords = {Authority, community, Computer, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, identity, internet, Mass media, network, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, offline, Online, online communication, Online community, religion, religion and internet, Religion and the Internet, religiosity, religious engagement, religious identity, Religious Internet Communication, Religious Internet Communities, Ritual, sociability unbound, Sociology of religion, users{\textquoteright} participation, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}digital religion{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}Internet Studies{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}media and religion{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}networked society{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}online identity{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious congregations{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious practice online{\textquotedblright}}, url = {http://nms.sagepub.com/content/15/5/680.abstract}, author = {Heidi A Campbell} } @article {1188, title = {The Use of Internet Communication by Catholic Congregations: A Quantitative Study}, journal = {Journal of Media and Religion}, volume = {6}, year = {2007}, pages = {291-309}, abstract = {This article presents a first attempt to measure the use of the internet by all 5,812 Catholic religious congregations and autonomous institutes worldwide (with 858,988 members). The research was conducted through a questionnaire sent by e-mail, hence first selecting those institutions which at least have an access to internet communication through an e-mail account (2,285: 39.3\% of the total), receiving 437 responses (19.1\% of the e-mail owners). The study shows great differences between centralized institutes and autonomous ones: the former ones make a higher use of the Internet than the latter ones; moreover, differences are also found among centralized institutes, namely between male and female ones. Two explanatory elements have been found, both depending on the own mission (charisma) of institutes: (1) first, the different approach to the external world: the institutes more devoted to contemplation and less active in the outside world make limited and basic use of the Internet, if any; (2) second, institutes whose aim is to assist poor and sick persons tend to use the internet less than the others, due to their different prioritization of resources.}, keywords = {Catholic, Catholic religious congregations, Computer, congregations, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, email, internet, internet communication through an e-mail account, Mass media, network, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online communication, Online community, religion, religion and internet, Religion and the Internet, religiosity, religious engagement, religious identity, Religious Internet Communication, Religious Internet Communities, sociability unbound, Sociology of religion, users{\textquoteright} participation, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious media research{\textquotedblright}}, url = {http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15348420701626797$\#$.Uinxtsasim5}, author = {Cantoni, L and Zyga, S} } @book {125, title = {E-vangelism: Sharing the Gospel in Cyberspace}, year = {1999}, publisher = {Huntington House Publishers}, organization = {Huntington House Publishers}, address = {Lafayette, LA}, abstract = {"E-vangelism: Sharing the Gospel in Cyberspace" by Andrew Careaga (Vital Issues Press) discusses saving souls in cyberspace. Chapter one, "E-vangelism: Fishing the Net," is online. Other chapters include "Getting Started," "The Wide, Wide World of the World Wide Web," "Chatting for Christians" and "Piercing the Darkness." "A lot of churches, parachurch ministries and devout believers see cyberspace as a new mission field," Careaga says. "They{\textquoteright}re using the Internet as a tool to get their message out, and it seems to be working." "E-vangelism" focuses on how churches, parachurch organizations and individuals are using the Internet to communicate their theology to the online world. Order this inspirational book online.}, keywords = {cyberspace, evangelism, Gospel, internet}, url = {www.e-vangelsim.com}, author = {Careaga, Andrew} } @article {1245, title = {Virtual Ritual, Real Faith : the Revirtualization of Religious Ritual in Cyberspace}, journal = {Online {\textendash} Heidelberg Journal of Religions on the Internet}, volume = {02.1}, year = {2006}, chapter = {73}, abstract = {Cheryl Anne Casey deals with Practicing Faith in Cyberspace: Conceptions and Functions of Religious Rituals on the Internet. She examines the emerging phenomenon of online religious rituals and their functions for participants in order to illuminate the relationship between changing technologies of communication and our changing conceptions of religion. Her case study considers an online Episcopalian church service within the framework of ritual theory. Keys to the analysis are the particular design chosen for the service (given the multifarious forms which rituals can take in cyberspace) and the relationship between choice of design and the tenets of the particular faith group. The objective of this study is to shed light on the relationship between conceptions of religion, religious experience, and changing media environments by examining online rituals and the meanings and functions these rituals hold for those who access them}, keywords = {Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, Episcopalian church, internet, media environments, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online communication, religious experience, RELIGIOUS RITUAL}, url = {http://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/ojs/index.php/religions/article/view/377/353}, author = {Cheryl Anne Casey} } @article {1186, title = {Digital Gravescapes: Digital Memorializing on Facebook}, journal = {The Information Society: An International Journal}, volume = {29}, year = {2013}, chapter = {184}, abstract = {I conduct a textual analysis of a digital memorial to understand the ways in which the digital sphere has disrupted or altered material and aesthetic displays of death and the associated genre of discourses surrounding death. I first use Morris{\textquoteright}s history of traditional gravescapes to situate digital memorials within their broader historical context. I then draw on the functional genre of eulogies, in particular Jamieson and Campbell{\textquoteright}s systematic description of eulogies, as a textual analytic to understand Facebook{\textquoteright}s unique memorializing discourse. My analysis suggests that the affordances of the Internet allow for a peculiar dynamic wherein the bereaved engage in communication with the deceased instead of with each other and yet strengthen the communal experience, as their personal communications are visible to the entire community. While the digital memorials lack the permanence of traditional gravescapes, the ongoing conversation they foster sublimates death into the process of communication.}, keywords = {Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, Death, digital media, digital memorials, discourse, eulogy, Facebook, gravescapes, memorializing, memorializing discourse, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online communication, Online community, religion, Religion and the Internet, religious engagement, rhetoric, social media, Sociology of religion, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}}, url = {http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01972243.2013.777309$\#$.UikZdDasim7}, author = {Scott Church} } @book {179, title = {Cyberhenge: Modern Pagans on the Internet}, year = {2005}, publisher = {Routledge}, organization = {Routledge}, address = {New York}, abstract = {InCyberhenge, Douglas E. Cowan brings together two fascinating and virtually unavoidable phenomena of contemporary life--the Internet and the new religious movement of Neopaganism. For growing numbers of Neopagans-Wiccans, Druids, Goddess-worshippers, and others--the Internet provides an environment alive with possibilities for invention, innovation, and imagination. From angel channeling, biorhythms, and numerology to e-covens and cybergroves where neophytes can learn everything from the Wiccan Rede to spellworking, Cowan illuminates how and why Neopaganism is using Internet technology in fascinating new ways as a platform for invention of new religious traditions and the imaginative performance of ritual. This book is essential reading for students and scholars of new religious movements, and for anyone interested in the intersections of technology and faith.}, keywords = {comparative religion, cults, cyberspace, internet, neopaganism, religious aspects}, url = {http://books.google.com/books?id=dE8vh7i80-IC\&printsec=frontcover$\#$v=onepage\&q\&f=false}, author = {Cowan, Douglas} } @book {1287, title = {Religion Online: Finding Faith on the Internet}, year = {2004}, publisher = {Routledge}, organization = {Routledge}, keywords = {Australia, cyberspace, identity, internet, Islam, religion, Spirituality, USA, virtual community, Youth}, url = {http://books.google.com/books?hl=en\&lr=\&id=wv7yBEkNy90C\&oi=fnd\&pg=PP2\&dq=religion+and+internet\&ots=CA4s_YcVP2\&sig=xdDIUwtCtkJoZbGLjswTPVLMeg4$\#$v=onepage\&q=religion\%20and\%20internet\&f=false}, author = {Lorne L. Dawson and Douglas E. Cowan} } @inbook {325, title = {The Mediation of Religious Experience in Cyberspace}, booktitle = {Religion and Cyberspace}, year = {2005}, pages = {15-37}, publisher = {Routledge}, organization = {Routledge}, address = {London}, abstract = {In the twenty-first century, religious life is increasingly moving from churches, mosques and temples onto the Internet. Today, anyone can go online and seek a new form of religious expression without ever encountering a physical place of worship, or an ordained teacher or priest. The digital age offers virtual worship, cyber-prayers and talk-boards for all of the major world faiths, as well as for pagan organisations and new religious movements. It also abounds with misinformation, religious bigotry and information terrorism. Scholars of religion need to understand the emerging forum that the web offers to religion, and the kinds of religious and social interaction that it enables. Religion and Cyberspace explores how religious individuals and groups are responding to the opportunities and challenges that cyberspace brings. It asks how religious experience is generated and enacted online, and how faith is shaped by factors such as limitless choice, lack of religious authority, and the conflict between recognised and non-recognised forms of worship. Combining case studies with the latest theory, its twelve chapters examine topics including the history of online worship, virtuality versus reality in cyberspace, religious conflict in digital contexts, and the construction of religious identity online. Focusing on key themes in this groundbreaking area, it is an ideal introduction to the fascinating questions that religion on the Internet presents.}, keywords = {cyberspace, Experience, religion}, url = {http://books.google.com/books?hl=en\&lr=\&id=KxSmkuySB28C\&oi=fnd\&pg=PA15\&dq=The+Mediation+of+Religious+Experience+in+Cyberspace\&ots=0g7zYpYFsK\&sig=nJ_zWsxPo0CCr1xnmMjA9F8ILGc$\#$v=onepage\&q=The\%20Mediation\%20of\%20Religious\%20Experience\%20in\%20Cyberspace\&f=fals}, author = {Dawson, L.} } @book {133, title = {Cyberchurch, Christianity and the Internet}, year = {1997}, publisher = {Kingsway Publications}, organization = {Kingsway Publications}, address = {Eastborne}, keywords = {Christianity, Church, cyberspace, internet}, author = {Dixon, Patrik} } @article {1176, title = {Prophetic Communities Online? Threat and promise for the church in cyberspace}, journal = {Listening: Journal of Religion and Culture}, volume = {34}, year = {1999}, chapter = {87}, keywords = {cyberspace, prophetic church, Prophetic Communities}, url = {http://www.drury.edu/ess/church/church.html}, author = {Charles Ess} } @article {1189, title = {The Divine Online: Civic Organizing, Identity Building, and Internet Fluency Among Different Religious Groups}, journal = {Journal of Media and Religion}, volume = {10}, year = {2011}, chapter = {73}, abstract = {The number of religious congregations with Web sites nearly tripled from 1998{\textendash}2006, and each year another 10,000 congregations launch a Web site (Chaves \& Anderson, 2008). Couple this with the fact that 79\% of attendees are now in a congregation with a Web site. Scholars of media and religion know very little, however, about the content of these Web sites or what they tell us about the culture of different religious groups. The aim of this article, therefore, is to examine how congregations are constructing Web sites to advertise their identity, organize their followers to get involved in civic and political issues, and provide an interactive space for online participation in actual ministries. Extensive qualitative data were gathered from 600 individual congregation Web sites from nine denominations in 53 different cities across the United States. The results of the descriptive analysis of these data suggest that there is a strong correlation between the {\textquotedblleft}off-line{\textquotedblright} characteristics of a particular congregation and the {\textquotedblleft}on-line{\textquotedblright} characteristics of the same congregation. Evangelical congregations tend to have more complex, attractive, and interactive Web sites and fall into the {\textquotedblleft}online religion{\textquotedblright} camp. Liberal-Protestant and Catholic congregations tend to create static {\textquotedblleft}brochure{\textquotedblright} style Web sites that emphasize their denominational identity and thus fall into Hadden and Cowan{\textquoteright}s (2000) {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright} camp. This study expands our theoretical knowledge about the proliferation of media into, and out of, religious congregations, and offers a broader understanding about how institutions negotiate their online identity in the digital age. [Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher{\textquoteright}s online edition of the Journal of Media and Religion for the following free supplemental resource: Appendix II: Web Site Screen Shots.]}, keywords = {Catholic, Catholic congregations, Catholics, Computer, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, internet, Mass media, media and religion, network, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online communication, Online community, religion, religion and internet, Religion and the Internet, religiosity, religious engagement, religious identity, Religious Internet Communication, Religious Internet Communities, religious media research, sociability unbound, Sociology of religion, users{\textquoteright} participation, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}online identity, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious congregations{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious media research{\textquotedblright}}, url = {http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15348423.2011.572438$\#$.Uin0bMasim4}, author = {Justin Farrell} } @book {136, title = {The Soul in Cyberspace}, year = {1997}, publisher = {Hourglass Books/Baker Books}, organization = {Hourglass Books/Baker Books}, address = {Grand Rapids, MI}, abstract = {This book evaluates the emerging technologies of cyberspace in relation to their effects on our society and souls, and deals especially with the potential pitfall of becoming informationally rich but spiritually deprived.}, keywords = {cyberspace, information, Soul, spiritual deprivation}, author = {Groothuis, Douglas} } @book {137, title = {thelordismyshepherd.com: Seeking God in Cyberspace}, year = {2000}, publisher = {Simcha Press.}, organization = {Simcha Press.}, address = {Deerfield Beach, FL}, abstract = {thelordismyshepherd.com opens a new and necessary dialogue on the soul of cyberspace. It will change the way people think about their computers, about God, about the future and about the interconnected destiny of humanity in this ever-shrinking world. The author, a noted rabbi and journalist, alternates between analytic and experiential approaches to the subject, escorting the reader on a multi-dimensional quest for spiritual and intellectual growth - a "virtual pilgrimage" if you will. A pilgrimage that travels tens of thousands of miles in a matters of instants, from Jerusalem to Mecca, to Chartres, even to Kosovo, and provides a new means of utilizing the vast power of technology to connect us to God and to transcend the artificial boundaries that separate us.}, keywords = {cyberspace, God, Seeking}, author = {Hammerman, Joshua} } @article {1187, title = {The Relationship Between Religiosity and Internet Use}, journal = {Journal of Media and Religion}, volume = {2}, year = {2003}, chapter = {129}, abstract = {With the solidifying of the Internet as an influential form of mediated communication has come a surge of activity among media scholars looking into what leads individuals to use this emerging technology. This study focuses on religiosity as a potential predictor of Internet activity, and uses a combination of secularization theory and uses and gratifications theory as a foundation from which to posit a negative relation between these 2 variables. Religiosity is found to retain a significant negative relation with Internet use at the zero order, and remains a robust negative predictor of the criterion variable even after accounting for a host of demographic, contextual, and situational variables. Ramifications for these findings are discussed and an outline for future research building on our analyses is provided.}, keywords = {Computer, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, internet, Mass media, network, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online communication, Online community, religion, religion and internet, Religion and the Internet, religiosity, religious engagement, religious identity, Religious Internet Communication, Religious Internet Communities, secularization theory, Sociology of religion, users{\textquoteright} participation, uses and gratifications, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious media research{\textquotedblright}}, url = {http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/S15328415JMR0203_01$\#$.UikaxDasim5}, author = {Greg G. Armfield \& R. Lance Holbert} } @article {332, title = {Virtually Sacred: The Performance of Asynchronous Cyber-RItuals in Online Spaces}, journal = {Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication}, volume = {12}, year = {2007}, abstract = {This article explores how the design of sacred spaces and ritual performance are transformed in the move from offline to online contexts. A semiotic analysis of two websites{\textemdash}a Christian Virtual Church and a Hindu Virtual Temple{\textemdash}suggests the potential for demarcating distinct online sacred spaces, in a Durkheimian sense, in which devotees can engage in ritual activity. The article focuses on the performance of cyberpuja in the Virtual Temple and the posting of prayers in the Virtual Church. Interviews with the Web designers and an analysis of the sites suggest that the virtual is primarily conceived in terms of a simulation of the "real." Consequently these sites are envisaged in terms of conventional notions of sacred space and ritual performance, rather than as something radically new.}, keywords = {cyberspace, Performance, Ritual, Sacred}, url = {http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol12/issue3/jacobs.html}, author = {Jacobs, S} } @article {77, title = {Religious Discourse and Cyberspace}, journal = {Religion}, volume = {32}, year = {2002}, month = {2002}, pages = {279-291}, abstract = {This article explores the evolution and development of a typology of cyberspatial religious discourse over the course of a few years. The vast quantity of information published on the Net requires the creation of a typology in order to identify and classify the different approaches, attitudes, applications and functions of religion on and in cyberspace. The three different typologies indicate, on the one hand, the versatile character of cyberspace, and on the other hand, the ever-expanding nature of its perimeters. They show that cyberspatial discourse, religious or not, cannot be confined within restricted boundaries but must be perceived as a changeable and unforeseen structure, having the capacity to adapt itself according to the visions, fantasies, ingenuities and inventiveness of the users. They also suggest that despite the rhizomatic construction of cyberspace, the information published on the innumerable religious sites can be systematised in a {\textquoteleft}logical{\textquoteright} formation.}, keywords = {Attitude, cyberspace, religion, Typology}, url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL\&_udi=B6WWN-47YPV51-2\&_user=10\&_coverDate=10\%2F31\%2F2002\&_rdoc=1\&_fmt=high\&_orig=search\&_sort=d\&_docanchor=\&view=c\&_searchStrId=1395870485\&_rerunOrigin=google\&_acct=C000050221\&_version=1\&_urlVersion=0\&_us}, author = {Anastasia Karaflogka} } @article {73, title = {Religion and technology: refiguring place, space, identity and community}, journal = {Area}, volume = {33}, year = {2001}, month = {July 2001}, pages = {404-413}, abstract = {This paper reviews the literature on the religion{\textendash}technology nexus, drawing up a research agenda and offering preliminary empirical insights. First, I stress the need to explore the new politics of space as a consequence of technological development, emphasizing questions about the role of religion in effecting a form of religious (neo)imperialism, and uneven access to techno-religious spaces. Second, I highlight the need to examine the politics of identity and community, since cyberspace is not an isotropic surface. Third, I underscore the need to engage with questions about the poetics of religious community as social relations become mediated by technology. Finally, I focus on questions about the poetics of place, particularly the technological mediation of rituals.}, keywords = {community, cyberspace, place, religion, space, technology}, url = {http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/118968381/abstract?CRETRY=1\&SRETRY=0}, author = {Lily Kong} } @article {390, title = {Cultivating the Self in Cyberspace: The Use of Personal Blogs among Buddhist Priests}, journal = {Journal of Media and Religion}, volume = {8}, year = {2009}, pages = {97-114}, abstract = {This research attempts to understand the Internet religious practices from the immanent perspective. Since previous research on this subject has been mainly transcendental, this study offers a challenging view using a different perspective. The exploration of cultivating the self in cyberspace revealed that the degree of self-cultivation varies contingent upon the given conditions and the technologies that the priests practice to interact with them. This research has a potential to further the exploration of the interaction of cyberspace and the inner self, expanding the boundary of the study beyond online religious practices. When cyberspace and the self are understood in the plane of consistency, the range of the study about the engagement of the self in the new media can be opened out. Understanding the notions of the process of territorializing intensities and technologies of the self, the engagement of the self in cyberspace can be more specifically developed.}, keywords = {blogs, cyberspace, Self}, url = {http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15348420902881027$\#$preview}, author = {Lee, J.} } @inbook {1269, title = {Dreams of Church in Cyberspace}, booktitle = {Digital religion, social media and culture: Perspectives, Practices and Futures}, year = {2012}, publisher = {Peter Lang Publishing}, organization = {Peter Lang Publishing}, chapter = {2}, address = {New York}, keywords = {Blogging, Church, cyberspace, mission, Networked individualism, social networks, virtual community, Virtual environments, Virtual World, virtuality}, url = {http://www.peterlang.com/index.cfm?event=cmp.ccc.seitenstruktur.detailseiten\&seitentyp=produkt\&pk=60410\&concordeid=311474}, author = {Knut Lundby} } @article {363, title = {The Gospel in Cyberspace: Reflections on Virtual Reality}, journal = {Epworth Review}, volume = {22}, year = {1995}, keywords = {cyberspace, Gospel}, author = {Meadows, P. R.} } @article {514, title = {Cyberspace as Sacred Space. Communicating Religion on Computer Networks}, journal = {Journal of the American Academy of Religion}, volume = {64}, year = {1996}, keywords = {Communication, Computer, cyberspace, networks}, url = {http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/1465622?uid=3739536\&uid=2129\&uid=2\&uid=70\&uid=4\&uid=3739256\&sid=56265187143}, author = {O{\textquoteright}Leary, Stephen.D.} } @article {525, title = {Cyberethics: New challenges or old problems}, journal = {Concilium}, volume = {1}, year = {2005}, pages = {15-26}, keywords = {cyberspace, ethics}, author = {Ottmar, J.} } @article {1192, title = {Media, religion and the marketplace in the information economy: evidence from Singapore}, journal = {Environment and Planning}, volume = {44}, year = {2012}, chapter = {1969}, abstract = {In this paper we suggest that the exchange of communication in a mediatized environment is transforming the nature of transactions in the religious marketplace. In~this economy of religious informational exchanges, digitalization facilitates a process of mediatization that converts religious performance into forms suitable for commodifi cation and commoditization. The intersection of digital media, religion, and the marketplace is demonstrated in the context of mega Protestant and Buddhist organizations in Singapore. We show how these large organizations embed media relations in their sacred spaces through a process of hybridization. In turn, hybrid spaces are converted into material outputs that may be readily transacted in real and virtual spaces. Hybridization attends to a postmodern audience and consumers who value experience and sensorial stimulations. It integrates retail, entertainment, and the aesthetics into a space of ascetic performance that is digitally transportable. Digital transactional spaces thrive on the abundance of information, and information multiplies when communication is unfettered by the absence of proprietary safeguards. The religious marketplace may therefore be understood as a medially driven performance space where points of interaction are digitally}, keywords = {Buddhism, Computer, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, digital media, hybridization, information economy, internet, Mass media, network, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online communication, Online community, Protestantism, religion, religion and internet, Religion and the Internet, religiosity, religious engagement, religious identity, Religious Internet Communication, Religious Internet Communities, Singapore, sociability unbound, Sociology of religion, users{\textquoteright} participation, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}digital religion{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}Internet Studies{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}media and religion{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}networked society{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}online identity{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious congregations{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious practice online{\textquotedblright}}, doi = {10.1068/a44272}, url = {http://paulinehopecheong.com/media/8eb82a57db78bb75ffff839dffffe41e.pdf}, author = {Jessie Poon and Shirlena Huang and Pauline Hope Cheong} } @inbook {612, title = {The Cybersangha: Buddhism on the Internet}, booktitle = {Religion Online: Finding Faith on the Internet }, year = {2004}, publisher = {Routledge}, organization = {Routledge}, chapter = {10 (pg. 135-147)}, address = {New York}, abstract = {After sex, religion is one of the most popular and pervasive topics of interest online, with over three million Americans turning to the internet each day for religious information and spiritual guidance. Tens of thousands of elaborate websites are dedicated to every manner of expression. Religion Online provides an accessible and comprehensive introduction to this burgeoning new religious reality, from cyberpilgrimages to neo-pagan chatroom communities. A substantial introduction by the editors presenting the main themes and issues is followed by sixteen chapters addressing core issues of concern such as youth, religion and the internet, new religious movements and recruitment, propaganda and the countercult, and religious tradition and innovation. The volume also includes the Pew Internet and American Life Project Executive Summary, the most comprehensive and widely cited study on how Americans pursue religion online, and Steven O{\textquoteright}Leary{\textquoteright}s field-defining Cyberspace as Sacred Space.}, keywords = {Buddhism, Cybersangha, cyberspace, internet, Online, religion}, url = {http://books.google.com/books?id=xy0PJrrWXH4C\&pg=PA123\&lpg=PA123\&dq=The+Cyber+Sangha:+Buddhism+on+the+Internet+by+Prebish\&source=bl\&ots=ahTmLWH6rM\&sig=X9S_FlncZAcHkpdQKYBhigIdegU\&hl=en\&sa=X\&ei=lmVvUOnmOeGg2AXF24GYBw\&ved=0CDgQ6AEwAw$\#$v=onepage\&q\&f=false}, author = {Prebish, C.D.}, editor = {Dawson, L. and Cowan, D.} } @inbook {1179, title = {Hindu Worship Online and Offline}, booktitle = {Digital Religion: Understanding Religious Practice in New Media Worlds}, year = {2013}, publisher = {Routledge}, organization = {Routledge}, chapter = {8}, keywords = {cyberspace, Hindu, New Media and Society, New Technology and Society, Religion and the Internet, religious engagement, Sociology of religion}, author = {Heinz Scheifinger} } @article {1190, title = {A Study of Church/Ministry Internet Usage}, journal = {Journal of Ministry Marketing \& Management}, volume = {7}, year = {2002}, chapter = {23}, abstract = {This manuscript reports the results of a national survey of Internet use by churches and ministries. The mail survey to a random sample of 500 churches and ministries sought to determine the proportion of churches/ministries with Internet access, how the Internet was being used by their organization, and organizational characteristics. A total of 448 questionnaires were delivered and 113 were returned resulting in a response rate of 25.2\%. About 93 percent of the respondents surveyed reported using a computer. Of that 93 percent, about 70 percent reported they had Internet access. When asked about how the Internet has helped their church, respondents reported communications with others as the most important benefit, followed by staying better informed on products and services, and as a research tool for sermons and Bible studies. Among respondent churches who had Internet access, about 37 percent had a webpage. Of those who did not have a webpage, 58 percent plan on having one within a year. The most common ways churches use their website were found to be (1) describing features of the church such as service times or scheduled events, (2) creating a way to communicate with others about the church, (3) providing a way for people to contact the church by e-mail, and (4) image creation. Respondents cited several benefits of having a website: (1) improved communication, (2) increased member knowledge about church programs and (3) increased attendance at church services or activities.}, keywords = {Church, Computer, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, internet, Internet access, Internet use by churches and ministries, Mass media, national survey, network, New Media and Society, new media engagement, New Technology and Society, online activities, online communication, Online community, religion, religion and internet, Religion and the Internet, religiosity, religious engagement, religious identity, Religious Internet Communication, Religious Internet Communities, religious organizations, sociability unbound, Sociology of religion, users{\textquoteright} participation, virtual community, virtual public sphere, {\textquotedblleft}digital religion{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}media and religion{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}media research{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}online identity{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religion online{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious congregations{\textquotedblright}, {\textquotedblleft}religious media research{\textquotedblright}}, url = {http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J093v07n01_03$\#$.Uin3-Masim5}, author = {Robert E. Stevens and Paul Dunn and David L. Loudon and Henry S. Cole} } @mastersthesis {1197, title = {Gender, Faith, and Storytelling: An Ethnography of the Charismatic Internet}, volume = {Ph.D.}, year = {2012}, school = {University of Sussex}, type = {Doctoral Thesis}, abstract = {Although early predictions that an emerging {\textquoteleft}cyberspace{\textquoteright} could exist in separation from offline life have been largely discarded, anthropological studies of the internet have continued to find notions of {\textquoteleft}virtual reality{\textquoteright} relevant as individuals use these technologies to fulfil the {\textquotedblleft}pledges they have already made{\textquotedblright} (Boellstorff, 2008; Miller \& Slater, 2001: 19) about their own selfhood and their place in the world. There are parallels between this concept of {\textquoteleft}virtual reality{\textquoteright} and the on-going spiritual labour of Charismatic Christians in the UK, who seek in the context of a secularising nation to maintain a sense of presence in the {\textquotedblleft}coming Kingdom{\textquotedblright} of God. The everyday production of this expanded spiritual context depends to a large extend on verbal genres that are highly gendered. For women, declarations of faith are often tied to domestic settings, personal narratives, and the unspoken testimony of daily life (e.g. Lawless, 1988; Griffith, 1997). The technologies of the internet, whose emerging genres challenge boundaries between personal and social, public and private, can cast a greater illumination on this inward-focused labour. This doctoral thesis is based on ethnographic research in four Charismatic Evangelical congregations and examination of the online practices of churchgoers. I have found that the use of the internet by Charismatic Christian women fits with wider religious preoccupations and patterns of ritual practice. Words posted through Facebook, blogs, Twitter, and other online platforms come to resemble in their form as well as their content Christian narratives of a life with meaning.}, keywords = {anthropological studies, Computer, Contemporary Religious Community, cyberspace, declarations of faith, digital cultures, domestic settings, Evangelic, Faith, GENDER}, url = {http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/45226/1/Stewart,_Anna_Rose.pdf}, author = {Stewart, Anna} } @article {825, title = {The End of Cyberspace and Other Surprises}, journal = {Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Worlds}, volume = {12}, year = {2006}, chapter = {383}, abstract = {This article reports on Web 2.0, the end of cyberspace, and the internet of things. It proposes that these concepts have synergies both with the current fashion for modifying physical objects with the features of virtual objects, as evidenced in O{\textquoteright}Reilly{\textquoteright}s MAKE magazine and similar projects, and with the potential technologies for collective intelligence described by Bruce Sterling, Adam Greenfield, Julian Bleecker and others. It considers Alex Pang{\textquoteright}s research on the end of cyberspace and asks whether the {\textquoteleft}new{\textquoteright} of new media writing will have any meaning in a world that is updated by the microsecond every time there is fresh activity in the system. }, keywords = {cyberspace, media, Technologies}, url = {http://www.google.com/url?sa=t\&rct=j\&q=\&esrc=s\&source=web\&cd=1\&ved=0CDIQFjAA\&url=http\%3A\%2F\%2Finstruct.uwo.ca\%2Fmit\%2F3771-001\%2FThe_End_Of_Cyberspace_and_Other_Surprises__Sue_Thomas.pdf\&ei=y_gCUY-sFcOy2wWv6YHYAw\&usg=AFQjCNERh2NDOFVfdMfiM73ReWSaj7aaEg\&bvm}, author = {Thomas, S} }