Digital Faith and the Reconfiguration of Religious Identity: How Social Media Transforms Belief and Community in Contemporary Society

This research assesses how social media transforms identity and community of religion at present times. This project applies ethnographic methods to examine how belief, performative spirituality and mediated authority are negotiated on digital platforms by various faiths. The authors collected primary data by way of participant observation and content analysis of social media posts on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and secondary from literature and digital archives. According to the findings, social media stimulates dynamic processes of identity construction where individuals are able to curate, perform and negotiate religious selves in highly visible interactive arenas. Spiritual influencers and leaders emerge as players engaging with authority and normativity online, while online groups pave the way for affirmation and reappraisal of traditional belief systems. The research furthermore reveals an important dissonance between being genuine online and the performance of religion. Algorithms, along with the affordances they attach to a platform, shape the nature of religion itself. To sum up, digital space does not just recreate offline religiosity, but reorganizes communal belonging, authority, and spiritual selfhood. The study outlines ways faith organisations may ethically engage with their followers and use social media to build positive spaces in their communities. The study adds to scholarship in digital media studies and religious studies that brings sophisticated knowledge about the entanglement of technology, identity and spiritual practice.