Religious Communities in the Virtual Age I Digital Eco Spirituality? Phenomenology and Ethics of Experiencing "Nature" in Virtual Reality

Religious Communities in the Virtual Age Prof. Aleš Črnič, PhD, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Social Sciences
The COVID-19 pandemic has compelled many religious communities to establish new, more intense attitudes towards technologies and the digital worlds. The paper presents a concise overview of the concept and main findings of CHANSE-Recovira, an international research project that examines how the shape, role, and experience of religious life in Europe has been transformed by contemporary technology and digital culture.

Digital Eco Spirituality? Phenomenology and Ethics of Experiencing "Nature" in Virtual Reality, Assist. Prof. Gorazd Andrejč, PhD, University of Groningen, Faculty of Religion, Culture and Society and ZRS Koper (Institute for Philosophical and Religious Studies)
In recent years, the practice of immersing people in the visual and auditory worlds of different "natural" environments through virtual reality has been expanding dramatically. Part of this cultural phenomenon is the concept of digital eco spirituality: cultivating a deeper sense of connection with the earth and all living beings, and connecting with the Divine by immersing ourselves in the virtual natural world.


Within the framework of the national research programme Constructive Theology in the Age of Digital Culture and the Anthropocene, ZRS Koper (Institute for Philosophical and Religious Studies) and the Association for Comparative Religious Studies.