Materiality and animism in online rituals in Brazil: an exploration of the embodied and sensuous dimension of religious performances on virtual platforms

• Grant number: 23/17880-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: August 01, 2024
• End date: January 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Interdisciplinary Subjects
• Principal Investigator: Eduardo Rodrigues da Cruz
• Grantee: Victoria Vanessa dos Santos Bustamante
• Host Institution: Pró-Reitoria de Pós-Graduação (PRPG). Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (PUC-SP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This project will develop a new interpretation of the material dimension of online rituals, their effect on religious experience, and how they are shaping the ontological understanding of computer technology. Considering that in most ritual practices the presence of the body is crucial (Radde-Antweiler 2022) and they rely on material elements (Morgan 2010), I will particularly focus on the development of the ritual process, the sensual/bodily experiences emerging from such performances manifested by users, and the aesthetic arrangements of the virtual platforms where rituals take place. To do so, I will examine religious performances carried out in 3D social virtual worlds, which have already become popular options for religious practitioners due to their immersive and interactive potentialities. This study will be frame in online ritual practices associated with three existing and popular religions in Brazil - Catholicism, Evangelism, and Neopaganism - and how, depending on their level of 'structural openness', their interactions within and with digital environments might differ. The main hypothesis is that human interaction with virtual platforms during ritual performances involves a sensuous and relational approach, which can be found in animistic ontologies. I will do this by combining theoretical interpretation with participant observation and thematic interviews. (AU)