Venezuelan Evangelical Digital Diaspora, Pandemics, and the Connective Power of Contemporary Worship Music

Abstract

During 2020–2021, the COVID-19 pandemics exacerbated the use of digital communication tools for the general population as well as for migrant and diasporic communities. Due to social distancing requirements, church activities had to be suspended or restricted, therefore, local congregations and denominations had to incorporate social media as part of their regular worship channels in an unprecedented way. At the same time, these new spaces opened an opportunity for diasporas to reconnect with their churches back home, and to participate in digital worship projects. In this paper, we study the case of the digital worship collective Adorando en Casa (AeC), which was started at the onset of the pandemics, producing several crowdsourced original musical compositions, uploaded in popular social media sites, and distributed via messaging apps. We focus on the reasons for participation of Venezuelan musicians and singers from different regions in the country, and from the large diaspora of Venezuelan Evangelicals. Additionally, we analyze the characteristics, structure, and theology of some of the songs recorded, to show how the concept of a digital diasporic spiritual consciousness is powerfully expressed through worship music.

Digital Worship as Fostering or Inhibiting Social Inclusion and Social Cohesion

“…In both cases, social and cultural cohesion often manifests within the local community but is informed by connections with unique ethnocultural identities that do not necessarily fit the dominant social discourse. In the case of Mora and Martínez (2022), the digital worship collective Adorando en Casa (AeC) was specifically designed to facilitate religious experience among Venezuelan Evangelical diasporic communities on a global scale, with membership spread across South America, the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and Spain. The study demonstrates the effectiveness of digital religious communication as a mechanism to affirm and strengthen religious cultural identity and sense of community, inspire collaboration, and provide emotional and spiritual support in digital spaces (Mora and Martínez 2022).…”

“…In the case of Mora and Martínez (2022), the digital worship collective Adorando en Casa (AeC) was specifically designed to facilitate religious experience among Venezuelan Evangelical diasporic communities on a global scale, with membership spread across South America, the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and Spain. The study demonstrates the effectiveness of digital religious communication as a mechanism to affirm and strengthen religious cultural identity and sense of community, inspire collaboration, and provide emotional and spiritual support in digital spaces (Mora and Martínez 2022). While the intentionality of this initiative was to inspire global community among diaspora communities with a shared religious identity, evidence from Andrade and Doolin (2016) and Walker et al (2021) suggest digital religious communication has the potential to foster social and cultural cohesion across a diversity of religious traditions and ethnocultural communities on a local, national and global level.…”

“…However, additional research is required regarding the more specific role of digital participation in facilitating social inclusion within religious communities. A recent study from Mora and Martínez (2022) explores digital diasporic spiritual consciousness among Venezuelan Evangelicals through the digital worship collective, Adorando en Casa (AeC). Their findings suggest that the incorporation of social media into regular church worship channels has fostered improved sense of community and belonging among diaspora communities who have been able to reconnect with churches in their home countries through digital worship projects.…”

Between privilege and exclusion: Orthodox church singers coping with the Covid-19 lockdown

“…From the outset of the pandemic, singing became highlighted as a high-risk activity due to the increased amount of aerosols it releases (Charlotte, 2020; Gregson et al, 2021; Vance et al, 2021). Group singing was generally discouraged, and religious communities throughout the world faced the question how to practice music in worship without compromising the health of its performers (Freeman, 2021; Galadza, 2020; Mora & Martínez, 2022; Prassl, 2020). In the Orthodox Church of Finland, each parish was at liberty to organize their liturgical music within the restrictions recommended by the church.…”

El derecho a la protección legal, políticia y humanitaria, frente a la migración venezolana en el Perú ́

“…Frente a la diáspora venezolana, en el 2019, el gobierno de Vizcarra estableció restricciones de ingreso al Perú, con el visado humanitario o de pasaporte, (superintendencia Nro. 000177-2019) posteriormente, en enero del 2021, el gobierno envió unidades del ejército en su frontera con Ecuador a fin de controlar el ingreso de venezolanos indocumentados.Según(Mora and García, 2022) se menciona como frente a la diáspora evangélica venezolana, se creó una forma de comunicación espiritual mediante redes sociales que permitieron un apoyo espiritual a los migrantes evangélicos. El Ministerio de Justicia y Seguridad Pública de Brasil(Brasil, 2018) reporta que fueron recibidas 85.438 solicitudes de reconocimiento de la condición de refugiados por migrantes venezolanos, 61,681 solo fueron en el 2018, presentados en el estado de Roraima.En un análisis de la migración venezolana en el Perú, se encontró que el Perú ha sido el segundo país de destino para los migrantes venezolanos, aparte de Colombia, (Delgado-flores et al, ).…”