Papers

• Between digitalization and eventization: re-shaping the space of religious participation Daniele Ciocca Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca

  To participate in a religious rite in an urban church in Metro Manila means to assist to the display of dozens of lights, irradiating from the attendants’ personal smartphones. Whether to
  take a picture to later share on their Instagram Stories, or to let relatives from any point of the world enjoy the ritual through a Facebook livestream, Christian devotees living in the global Filipino diaspora take part in digitally mediated religious events that connect groups of people in diLerent physical places. In this presentation I focus on the spatial dimension of the digitalization of religious events inside the transnational Filipino catholic community. The research seeks to find an answer to two main questions: are digital platforms like social networking sites and applications re?shaping traditional forms of religious expression and participation? Is digitalization intertwined with the dynamics of eventization of the contemporary experience of the sacred? If so, how are they related? According to the results of my ethnography on digital religious practices of a young Filipino priest in Monza, I argue that dynamics of digitalization and eventization in contemporary Catholicism converge in a re-definition of the space of expression of the sacred. Whether in digitalized urban venues or in online social media groups, today forms of religious participation re-shape the category of space in Catholic modes of participation, transcending physical limitations of traditional structures of communication.The discussion of these themes will start from an ethnographic question: can online environments such as social media platforms be perceived and lived as appropriate places
  for religious life?

• Dharmic eventisation: Theravada Buddhism and effervescence in Java Roberto Rizzo University of Milan Bicocca

  This contribution examines the dynamics of “religious eventisation” formulated in the context of the modernist revival of Buddhism in Java and Indonesia at large. Responding to a decades-long perception of demographic contraction, many youth groups have become particularly active in recent years in the effort of mobilising their local Buddhist communities through socializing events which are more or less defined by religious frames and occurrences. At the same time, religious events of this kind are characterised by a widespread adoption of vocabularies, platforms and performative registers that originate in the broad pool of pop culture and neoliberal ethical grids. The paper focusses on the initiatives of a youth organization. It underscores the employment of corporate language and (mega-)event imaginaries in the process of articulating religious sociality along Theravada Buddhist lines. After contextualising the formation of the contemporary Buddhist minority and associationism within the broader Indonesian socioreligious tapestry, the paper will analyse the genesis of a specific youth group in urban Java and the activities carried out on the occasion of the yearly Weisak. It sheds light on the many ways in which eventisation and its imaginaries pour into Buddhist ethical vocabulary through entrepreneurial and prosperity discourse and practice. It shows, in the process, how religious change in contemporary Indonesia may be activated through distinct forms of effervescence that elude traditional religious repertoire.

• Threads of memories—sacred place, festivity and the Jain identity in Singapore Yifan Zhang Ghent University

  The Jain community is a religious group that constitutes a super minority in Southeast Asia. It is likely that a significant number of people in Southeast Asia are unaware of Jainism and the presence of the Jain community. The Jain community in Singapore, which includes both settlers and sojourners, reflects the dynamic nature of Jain religious practices and lives throughout Southeast Asia. Within a diasporic setting, the Jain community in Singapore is encountering a mainstream cultural milieu that diverges significantly from that of India. The Jains in Singapore strategically utilize their sthanak premises during Jain religious festivities to create a harmonious blend of physical, mental, and cultural spaces. This showcases their strong Jain identity and unity, highlighting the cohesive nature of the community through the celebration of significant Jain festivals throughout the year. The Singaporean Jain community is a non-clerical group, similar to other Jain communities outside of South Asia that have migrated from their home countries. The Jain sthanak in Singapore serves rather as a prominent communal space for Jains in Singapore to practice their religion. In addition to the sthanak, Jains in Singapore also actively engage in celebrating their major festivals through various means, such as public coverage, social media, and networking with the larger society. Within the context of these diverse sessions of festivities and functions, the festival serves as an entry point to explore the various layers and dynamics that exist within the overall celebration. With ethnography as its core methodology, the article aims to showcase the discourses and insights gathered from the field. The research focuses on the Jain festival of Ayambil Oli, which holds significance as a communal celebration for the Jain community in Singapore and as an external penance in Jain culture. The study delves into the importance of this festival, its link to the sthanak (the religious hub for Singaporean Jains), and the ever-evolving nature of Jain identities in the metropolis of Singapore.

Abstract