NA_DR Digital Religion

University of Finance and Administration
Summer 2027
Extent and Intensity
1/2/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Guaranteed by
doc. Giuseppe Maiello, Ph.D.
Department of Social Sciences – Departments – University of Finance and Administration
Contact Person: Mgr. Petra Dovhunová
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is offered to students of any study field.
Course objectives
The course introduces Digital Religion as a field of contemporary religious studies, offering conceptual and methodological tools to analyse how religion, myth and ritual are transformed in digital, online and immersive environments. Particular attention is paid to videogames, which are considered complex symbolic spaces in which religion can be represented and performed. They will be studied not only as cultural products, but as environments capable of generating mythologies, rituals and forms of belonging. The course adopts an interdisciplinary approach that integrates the history of religions, sociology, media studies, game studies and digital ethnography, and promotes critical reflection on research methods and future prospects in the field, with a focus on virtual reality and artificial intelligence.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, students will have acquired a solid understanding of Digital Religion as an evolving interdisciplinary field. They will be able to critically apply the categories of religion, myth and ritual to the analysis of religious phenomena in digital, online and immersive environments, considering the role of technological mediation and platforms. They will be able to interpret religious rituals, symbols and narratives as dynamic configurations generated by the interaction between actors and digital infrastructures. From his perspective, they will also be able to analyse video games as complex symbolic environments in which religion can be represented or structurally configured, distinguishing between explicit elements and implicit forms of rituality and mythology. The course will also enable students to acquire basic skills in digital research methods and a critical awareness of the main methodological and epistemological issues related to unstable sources and changing environments, as well as to discuss the future prospects of the field, with a focus on immersive technologies and artificial intelligence.
Syllabus

1.Introduction to Digital Religion and development of the field of study. Religion in digital environments and the onlife condition. 2. Myth and ritual as analytical categories in Digital Religion. 3. Mediated rituality, performance and participation. 4. Religious experience in digital spaces and third spaces. 5. Authority, authenticity and algorithmic mediation. 6. Research methodologies in Digital Religion and digital ethnography. 7. Production, organisation and management of digital religious data. 8. Study of digital religious spaces, platforms and immersive environments. 9. Video games as symbolic environments: myth, performative rituality, community and configurations of sacredness in playful worlds. 10. Practical exercises in research and analysis in digital and immersive environments (online observation, textual and visual analysis, video game analysis and use of virtual reality). 11. Methodological and ethical issues in digital research. 12. Future prospects: artificial intelligence, virtual reality and new forms of religious mediation.

Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
The course can also be completed outside the examination period.
The course is also listed under the following terms Summer 2025, Summer 2026.
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