台灣基督教網路宗教研究之初探

Abstract

在人類歷史上，宗教往往促成了科技的發生與其發展。且隨著媒體科技的進步，宗教信仰因此結合大眾媒體來傳播，直到網際網路新科技的崛起，電腦中介傳播也提供了宗教信仰一個新的管道與平台發聲。 國外宗教結合電腦使用於1980年代開始，並且在1990年代引起許多電腦中介傳播學者研究關於網路及宗教結合的現象。在台灣網路宗教的研究仍屬少數，所以此研究由台灣社會情境出發，以基督教網路宗教使用者與建構者為主要研究對象，以深度訪談的研究方法，了解網路特性如何影響台灣基督教傳播，並且使用者將網路如何應用於宗教信仰的追求上，功能為何？如何影響使用者的信仰生活？ 研究結果呈現出使用者看待網路宗教以「搜尋靈性知識工具」及「宗教社交支持」為主；且是輔助使用者的信仰生活的功能，所以使用者仍以實體的教會環境，也就是傳統信仰途徑為主要的宗教追求方式，此有可能是因為台灣基督教網路宗教仍在發展初期；另外，電腦中介傳播的特性如「訊息減少」、「去中心化」、「匿名性」等，使宗教透過網路傳播後，對原有基督教宗教文化與宗教內涵帶來衝擊，所以「打破信仰秩序」、「基督教信仰的團契功能重要性的反思」、「網路教會的可行性」都是所網路宗教對基督教文化帶來的影響。甚至在未來的網路2.0科技中，網路宗教從每一個教會組織作為提供建構者，權力下放到每一個網路宗教使用者，有可能引發更多改變。本研究不僅止於發現台灣基督教網路宗教的現象，並且期許此依研究可以發揮拋磚引玉之功用，在學術上使傳播學門或是宗教學門能夠關注於網路傳播於台灣宗教層面的研究，在基督教會層面也可以重視網路宗教帶來的影響。

Religion has influenced the development of technology in history. With the media improving, religions used the mass media to help them speak up. After people invent the WWW, computer mediated communication became a new channel for religions to perform themselves in a new way. The first use of computer in religion beliefs was in 1980’s, and in 1990’s many scholars in the field of CMC has made effort in researching the cyber-faith or so-called online religion. However, in Taiwan, these kinds of researches are few. Therefore, this research was from the viewpoint of Taiwan Christianity with the in-depth interviews of 15 interviewees, try to find out how the characteristics of CMC influence the Christian online religion in Taiwan, and how the online religion plays the role in the users’ experiences and makes the effects on the users’ religion and their lives. This research shows that users take online religion websites as a complementary in their religious lives, such as spiritual tools and religious social support. Those online religion users do not give up their original spiritual pursuits like going to churches. In addition, the characteristics of CMC have made large influences on the original Christianity culture, such as the disorder of religion hierarchy, to rethink the importance of social network in Christianity, and the possibility of the cyber-church. Moreover, the technology of web 2.0 will perhaps arouse a big issue on online religion in the future because the users will not be only user but also a provider online religion.As a result, this research discovered the initial period of Taiwan Christianity online religion, and it is a preliminary study. In the future, it is helpful for other researchers or churches in Taiwan to pay attention on the aspect of online religion research and development.