Coming soon...International Conference on Media, Religion & Culture

It is only one week until...

The Fifth International Conference on Media, Religion, and Culture: Mediating religion in the context of multicultural tension will be held in about a week in Stigtuna, Sweden. This is an important meeting for researchers interested in a variety of aspects of the convergence of media culture with religion.

I will be presenting a paper on a research project I have been working on since 2001 on religious identity construction through prayer meetings within Christian youth culture in Scotland, as well as leading a panel on the future directions of research on religion online. Hope to see some of you there!

Following the herd

I found this article this morning on Haaretz online. Following the herd makes a few interesting comments and links to UO response to media and a percieved decline in religious authority within the community. Especially interesting to note is the slow take up of the Kosher phone, a technology I have been following for the last 2 years.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews surf the forbidden web

This article "Ultra-Orthodox Jews surf the forbidden web" is about one month old, but I found it especially interesting as I spent several hours in Mea Sheraim, the main Ultra Orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem just a few days ago. UO response to the internet is quite an interesting and contentious issue.

If you want to know more about this subject I recommend reading:
Barzilai-Nahon, K. & Barzilai , G. (2005). Cultured Technology: Internet & Religious Fundamentalism. In: The Information Society 21/1.

A journey into the realms of religious engagement with new media

Shalom, Marhaba & Hello! I have started this blog as a way to help organize my thoughts for a book project I am working on. When Religion Meets New Media is a research project that aims to investigate and discuss how religious communities percieve of and interact with new media technologies, especially the internet and cell phones. I am spending a lot of time online for this project looking at how religion is re-presented online and the interesting dialogue which emerge around religious engagement with new media. This is a space for me to share some of these interesting articles, thoughts and resources I am finding helpful in this journey. Your questions, comments and helpful remarks are most welcome!