Online Religion? The Evolving Religious Information Landscapes of Zen Buddhism and Roman Catholicism

Abstract

Advances in technology allow for new modes of access to both secular and religious information. Historically, some religious groups seem to have been eager to accept technological developments, while others have done so reluctantly. Nevertheless, the sustainability of a religious tradition depends on the ability of its believers to continually access information in an evolving world. Modern technology has occasioned broader religious information landscapes than ever before, to the extent that religion can seemingly be practiced using entirely online tools. Is this possibility borne out in reality? Through a synthesis of the nature and historical development of Zen Buddhism and Roman Catholicism, this study identifies some aspects inherent in each tradition that have influenced each one's religious information landscape. It then explores the extent to which each religion can be practiced without an in-person faith community. These findings suggest an opportunity for further investigation into the information behavior of technology-enabled believers as a means of better understanding the future of religious experience.

Exploring Karmic Capital in the Context of Cultural Information Practices

“…Religious identity is recognized by others through a person's actions, practices, and preferences, as well as through the ways in which others relate to and respond to them. This finding mirrors that of Gorichanaz (2015), who found that devotees wish to be recognized as such by peer believers, family members, colleagues, and the public.…”

Capital as the outcome of information practices: a study of devotees and monks of a Theravada Buddhist Temple

“…A key aspect of the findings was the participants’ wish for their religious identity to be recognised by others. This finding mirrors that of Gorichanaz (2015), who found that the Zen Buddhists wished to be recognised as such by peer believers, family members, colleagues and the public. While neither of these studies is explicitly concerned with the creation of capital, nonetheless, it is possible to interpret the knowledge acquired as embodied cultural capital and these wishes to be recognised as being examples of the acknowledgement of reputation, a form of symbolic capital (c.f.…”

“…Since this early work, several studies (e.g. Chabot, 2019;Gorichanaz, 2015;Gaston, 2014;Guzik, 2018) have shown that religious and cultural aspects are emerging as trends in research into information practices. A key feature of this information practices perspective is that information practices are social and interrelated, and can include secular as well as non-secular aspects.…”

“…The relatively few studies that have emerged have suggested that in this context, expressions of embodied cultural capital may be significant in processes of cultural legitimation. Gorichanaz (2015), who compared the practices of Zen Buddhists with those of Catholics, emphasised the significance of what could be interpreted as embodied cultural capital to each group, but importantly identified differences in what constituted what Bourdieu had referred to as embodied cultural capital. Using the metaphor of information landscapes, he suggests that a religion moulds its information landscape (p. 14), since, in his interpretation, for Catholics authority comes from the printed word of the Bible and from the validation of regular attendance at Mass, whereas the Zen Buddhists coming from an oral tradition of Dharma teaching and preaching do not vest ultimate authority in the printed word nor in validation by monks, but rather focus on the practice of meditation and of carrying out good works.…”

“…Gorichanaz explored the resources used by Zen Buddhists, in particular, the most popular ones: podcasts and iPhone apps. He found that their information landscape, defined as “sites where believers gather; religious objects and their use; social networks; prayers, rituals and sacred texts; rulings, exegeses, sermons and other interpretations; and books and other sources that relate religious belief and practice to everyday life” (2015, p. 6), was constructed through technological advancements and had changed over time, to the point where in this community, this form of Buddhism could seemingly be practised using entirely online tools. A study of the everyday information behaviours of Buddhists in Laos (Gaston et al.…”