Digitalization of Religion
The Technology Religions Live By

Technology has always been part of society, but the kind of technology we live by shapes how we live. This project investigates how digitalization unfolds within an established religious institution, focusing on the Church of Norway as a case study.

While institutional religious participation is in decline across Europe, churches remain among the most significant actors in civil society. The shift to a digital era brings organizational changes as well as new opportunities for service provision and public engagement. The project explores questions such as how the development of digital infrastructure transforms a religious institution, and how the integration of digital communication reshapes physical meeting places where specific religious services take place.

The Church of Norway (CoN) will serve as the empirical case for this study. Like other majority churches in the Nordic region, the CoN has been an early adopter of the internet and social media. Empirical material will include participant observation of practices such as “drop-in weddings”—a recent innovation designed to attract people to the church in more informal and accessible ways.