Volume V: Economy, Politics, and Environmental Governance

Religious Practices in Immersive Virtual Worlds: Rethinking the Direction of Digital Religion Studies

  • Paelani Setia UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia
  • M. Yusuf Wibisono UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia

Keywords

Digital Religion, Religious Practices, Immersive Virtual Worlds, Virtual Collective Effervescence.

Abstract

The rapid development of digital technology has fostered the emergence of immersive virtual worlds that enable individuals not only to communicate but also to engage in religious practices within virtual spaces. Although digital religion studies have expanded significantly, most research continues to focus on media use as a means of communication, identity formation, and the negotiation of religious authority. In contrast, relatively little attention has been given to religious practices that take place within immersive virtual worlds. This article aims to reconsider the direction of digital religion studies by positioning religious practices in immersive virtual worlds as an important area of inquiry. Using a qualitative approach and a library research method, the analysis demonstrates that immersive virtual worlds generate new forms of rituals, symbols, social interactions, and collective experiences that cannot be fully explained by the dominant paradigms in digital religion studies. Therefore, digital religion scholarship needs to move beyond its emphasis on media and communication toward an analysis of religion as a social practice and a form of collective life within virtual spaces. This article proposes the concept of virtual collective effervescence as an initial conceptual framework for understanding these dynamics.

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