Digital ecclesiologies under construction

Ways of being Church in digital and pandemic times

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic has brought about a major transformation in all areas of human life, especially in the way people cultivate their social relationships. The practice of faith was also directly affected, with restrictions on people in the churches, which led to a race to the only space where they could continue to live and share their faith without risk of contamination: the digital environment. This acceleration of the digitalisation process of society has significant consequences in the very essence, performance and self-understanding of the Catholic Church. In view of this, this exploratory and bibliographic research presents the main ecclesial models currently found in the plural and globalized society, ranging from traditional to digital. Its theoretical basis for ecclesiological discussions is the works of Avery Dulles (1978) and João Batista Libânio (1999). About the ecclesiologies emerging from the digital age, it points out the ideas of Antonio Spadaro (2012), Landon Whitsitt (2011) and Dwight Friesen (2009), in addition to the ecclesiology of Pope Francis (2020). This article was adapted and extended from the essay “The Diverse Ways of Being Church in the Digital The coronavirus pandemic has brought about a major transformation in all areas of human life, especially in the way people cultivate their social relationships. The practice of faith was also directly affected, with restrictions on people in the churches, which led to a race to the only space where they could continue to live and share their faith without risk of contamination: the digital environment. This acceleration of the digitalisation process of society has significant consequences in the very essence, performance and self-understanding of the Catholic Church. In view of this, this exploratory and bibliographic research presents the main ecclesial models currently found in the plural and globalized society, ranging from traditional to digital. Its theoretical basis for ecclesiological discussions is the works of Avery Dulles (1978) and João Batista Libânio (1999). About the ecclesiologies emerging from the digital age, it points out the ideas of Antonio Spadaro (2012), Landon Whitsitt (2011) and Dwight Friesen (2009), in addition to the ecclesiology of Pope Francis (2020). This article was adapted and extended from the essay “The Diverse Ways of Being Church in the Digital Society and in Times of Pandemic”, originally written in the English language and published by the author in the e-book “Digital Ecclesiology: a Global Conversation”, edited by Heidi A. Campbell in August 2020. Without intending to exhaust the topic, this research discusses the ecclesial changes in the midst of the pandemic that influence the present and future of the Catholic Church, in order to begin the construction of digital ecclesiologies consistent with the Christian faith.