Digital Society, Social Change and Contestation in the Fight for Religious Authorities Between Muslim Generations: A Study of the Surakarta Muslim Communities

Abstract

Surakarta is one of the regions in Central Java with a high-rank level of religious plurality. Many Islamic religious organizations have emerged and developed in this region so that they have created their own socio-religious dynamics for their followers in any level of society. The high social friction that occurs among people has made Surakarta an arena of contestation for religious authorities among Muslim generations mostly driven by Islamic organizations, both in the real and virtual (online) worlds. This contestation occurs through the way of truth claims that cause each Muslim generation to make a demarcation in economic, social, and religious-cultural aspects. This research aims to reveal and to map the expansion of the ideologies among the Muslim organizations in Surakarta through their social networks by which they attempt to seize influence over digital communities. It also will examine how the contestation has socio-religious impacts on the surface level.