Religion Online

As we have discussed in class, many religions have space on the World Wide Web devoted to online ritual. Many religious communities have made it possible for different rituals to be done online. For example, the Islamic faith makes it possible to "travel" to Mecca  for the Hajj once a year. Online websites have set up  virtual pilgrimages to Mecca, attempting to recreate this important ritual. Similarly Helland discusses a Techno pagans and their use of online ritual. This religious group believes that "through “declarative acts” and “performative utterances” the neopagan community affirmed that cyberspace could be sacred space"(Helland). These scholars also cite that as long as the authenticity is there, then religion online is the same as it would be offline. However, this blog focuses on Christianity, so we will now look at this religion in light of online ritual. As far as Christianity is concerned it is all about a matter of the heart. Once a Christian is saved the Holy Spirit is living inside of the Christian, therefore worshiping is not limited to a building. At the same time however, since a Christian can worship wherever, logging on to a website is not necessary. Online religion in terms of Christianity is just an extra step that is not needed. The point of the Christian church, as defined in the book of Acts is for fellowship with other believers and the building up of the Body of Christ. An online worship center is not how Jesus intended for the the body of believers to gather, therefore online ritual does not work for the Christian Church who truly walks in accordance with the Scriptures. As far as super natural efficacy is concerned, Christians believe that God does not need a sacred sanctuary or even a sacred computer screen to move mightily. God will move mightily if it is according to His will, and if the believer is pure in heart. You can experience an encounter with God in a church, in a virtual sanctuary, or on a bus, the location does not matter, so God's presence and power is not limited to a computer, but at the same time it is not limited to either a Church offline or a computer online.If the Christian believes that in order to experience the super natural they need to be in a physical church or a virtual church, they do not fully understand the nature of God.