Digitalization and Religious Life: A Literature Review on Social Media, Digital Religiosity, and the Transformation of Religious Knowledge

Öz

The migration of religious practice, authority, and community onto digital platforms has generated a distinct field of scholarship often termed digital religion studies. This paper reviews the development of this field, from early debates over the distinction between "religion online" and "online religion," through the maturation of digital religion as a recognized area of media and religious studies, to more recent research on social-media-mediated religious authority and the transformation of how religious knowledge is produced, transmitted, and contested. The review pays particular attention to research on Muslim digital environments, given the substantial body of scholarship this context has generated, while situating these findings within the broader comparative literature on digital religion across traditions. It finds that digital platforms have not simply relocated existing religious practice into a new medium but have measurably reshaped religious authority, enabling new, often non-traditionally credentialed voices to gain influence while simultaneously creating new mechanisms through which established authorities seek to maintain legitimacy online. The review concludes by identifying underexamined areas, including the algorithmic curation of religious content and its implications for religious pluralism, as priorities for future research.