Sacralising Cyberspace: Online Religious Activism in Ethiopia
In the modern technological era, social media has become one of the imperative ways to exchange ideas, converse, disseminate information and advocate for diverse socio-political causes. Accordingly, social media serves as a platform for expressing religious views, practicing religion in a virtual sp...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Hradec Králové
2015-12-01
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| Series: | Modern Africa |
| Online Access: | https://journals.uhk.cz/modernafrica/article/view/77 |
| Summary: | In the modern technological era, social media has become one of the imperative ways to exchange ideas, converse, disseminate information and advocate for diverse socio-political causes. Accordingly, social media serves as a platform for expressing religious views, practicing religion in a virtual space with a cybercommunity of believers, communicating religious differences, advocating for a religious cause, and as a forum of religious learning and teaching. The ubiquitous nature and growing use of social media pose a challenge to the geographic appeal of religion. Growing cyber spirituality is becoming visible in the global south where the technological advancement is in its formative stage. Paradoxically, despite the very poor profile of cyber technology, coupled with repressive political regimes, there is a growing religious cyber activism in contemporary Africa. There is a discernible gap of empirical studies on the appropriation of social media for religious purpose, their use by religious clerics, lay believers and religious activists. By exclusively focusing on the case of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church, one of the oldest oriental orthodox churches, this paper sheds some light on how the modern social media is serving as an alternative platform for religious communities including the old conservative religious establishments.
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| ISSN: | 2336-3274 2570-7558 |