Virtual Reality Church as a New Mission Frontier in the Metaverse: Exploring Theological Controversies and Missional Potential of Virtual Reality Church

Abstract

The combination of COVID-19 and the Fourth Industrial Revolution has brought an unprecedented new normal, which has affected all aspects of human life, including religious activities. As a consequence, church mission and different ministries have found themselves more dependent on media. Furthermore, the convergent digital technology continually develops augmented reality and virtual reality, in which churches are planted and continue to carry out their mission and ministries. Although virtual reality churches are new mission frontiers in the digital age, there are several theological issues from the conventional perspective of church ministry and mission. This paper aims to address the controversial theological issues and reflect on them from an ecclesiological perspective to explore a theological possibility to overcome the issues and to justify their mission and ministries in virtual reality.

Using Google Trends to Analyze Keywords ‘Ibadah Online’ and ‘Gereja Online’ in Indonesia

“…Online is the term referring to a system or a network involving internet [16]. According to Jun, the use of the term 'gereja online' refers more to how the church responds to digitalization and repositions itself through internet-based services [17]. This means only the implementation form that is changed.…”

Virtual Reality Methods

“…Yet VR potentially offers a more immersive religious experience and community. Founded in 2016 by DJ Soto, VR Church offers a new and innovative opportunity where people can use VR to develop real relationships across geographical boundaries (Round, 2019;Jun, 2020). The VR Church community is an extremely active group with weekly services in 'Church World' via AltspaceVR and various chat platforms including Discord.…”

Metaverse ve Din Kavramlarının Sosyal Medya Madenciliği Yolu ile İncelenmesi

“…İnternet çağıyla birlikte dini iletişimsel faaliyetler websitelerine ve sosyal medyaya da uzanmıştır. Pandemi dönemi ile birlikte, ibadethanelere ulaşma noktasında zorlukların karşısında, çevrimiçi dua grupları, Youtube üzerinden ve sosyal ağlarda dini içerikler oluşturma gibi eylemler yapılmıştır (Jun, 2020).…”

“…Özellikle post-modern toplumda, bireycilik anlayışı yüzünden inananların dini vecibelere tamamen bağlı olduklarını görmek zordur. Bu durum fiziksel dünyada topluluk duygusunu ciddi şekilde zayıflatmakta ve bir yansıması olarak sanal dünyalarda da problem yaratması beklenmektedir (Jun, 2020).…”