Cyber Cemeteries as a Challenge to Traditional Reformed Thanatological Liturgical Praxis

Abstract

Cyberspace and ritual liturgical expression in cyberspace are areas of immense complexity. This thesis explores ritual liturgical expression in cyberspace using network ethnography, with Facebook and the memorial website of Chester Bennington as the primary thanatechnologies and field sites. Key concepts include cyber cemeteries, liminality, network society/culture, post-mortal society and cyber ritual. These concepts are used to understand ritual liturgical expression as observed in the research data gathered at the field sites. Based on this data It was found that ritual liturgical expression in cyberspace was strongly influenced by the narratives of the individuals in encoding and decoding their bodies as they moved between the dimensions of cyberspace and corporeal space. It was also found that narratives were responsible for the construction of ritual liturgical space, and that the narratives that constituted the space in cyberspace could create a context where the sacred could be experienced. It is therefore evident that notions around the understanding of specifically embodiment and space are fundamentally challenged by the reality of cyberspace. The way in which these concepts are challenged raises critical questions about the thanatological liturgical praxis of the Dutch Reformed Church (DRC). This thesis adopts the stance that within the complexity of ritual liturgical expression in cyberspace, the opportunity exists for a new and evolved ritual repertoire to inform the current thanatological liturgical praxis of the DRC.