Ritual in a Digital Society

Abstract

We live in a digital society, where life takes place at the offline-online nexus. The shift towards a continuous blending of offline and online dimensions also affects rituals. Understanding digital rituals challenges us to explore new questions, new rules, new possibilities, and new limitations regarding rituals that are shaped by digitalization. In this book, the authors address these issues by relating ritual studies to digital culture studies. The book offers different case studies in the field of digital rituals, including pilgrimage and online storytelling, digital death rituals and mourning practices, religious online education, and online memorial practices. This book is published on the occasion of the retirement of Paul Post, professor of Ritual Studies at Tilburg University from 1994 until 2019