I am aware of seven articles that were published in October 2010 that directly relate to the topic of religion online. I will list them below with the abstracts if available. Sidenote: I was pleased with myself when I read Heidi Campbell's blog entry listing "New Publications in Religion and the Internet. She is a scholar who is  immersed in this field and has more access to resources than I do, but I found earlier three of the five articles she mentioned on the list. So my finger starts to get on the pulse of the discipline. Tweeting Prayers and Communicating Grief Over Michael Jackson Online by Jimmy Sanderson, Pauline Hope Cheong in Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society

Death and bereavement are human experiences that new media helps facilitate alongside creating new social grief practices that occur online. This study investigated how people’s postings and tweets facilitated the communication of grief after pop music icon Michael Jackson died. Drawing on past grief research, religion, and new media studies, a thematic analysis of 1,046 messages was conducted on three mediated sites (Twitter, TMZ.com, and Facebook). Results suggested that social media served as grieving spaces for people to accept Jackson’s death rather than denying it or expressing anger over his passing. The findings also illustrate how interactive exchanges online helped recycle news and “resurrected” the life of Jackson. Additionally, as fans of deceased celebrities create and disseminate web-based memorials, new social media practices such as “Michael Mondays” synchronize tweets within everyday life rhythms and foster practices to hasten the grieving process.

The Internet and the Church: An Introduction by Timothy Hutchings in The Expository Times

The Internet is connecting people and organisations around the world in important new ways, changing the way we relate to one another, find resources, share information and form communities. These changes have very important implications for Christians and their churches. This article offers an overview of online activity, including websites, blogs, forums, social network sites, virtual worlds and online evangelism, and introduces theoretical work on the importance of online social networking, the role of the user in shaping technology, and the balance between control and participation in online activity.

Internet Threats to Hindu Authority: Puja-ordering Websites and the Kalighat Temple by Heinz Scheifinger in Asian Journal of Social Science

This article investigates particular threats to authority within Hinduism as a result of the Internet. It focuses upon websites which allow for pujas (devotional rituals) to be ordered to be carried out at the important Kalighat Temple in Kolkata. The two groups which currently exercise authority at the temple are identified, along with the specific forms of authority which they exercise. The processes which are occurring as a result of the puja-ordering websites and the activities of those responsible for them are then demonstrated. The argument put forward is that, in addition to the puja ordering services being a threat to both the authority of the temple administration and the priests working there, they also have the potential to affect the relationship between these two groups. Findings from the Kalighat Temple case study further suggest that the effects at temples of online puja-ordering services are dependent upon the current situation at respective temples.

'You Wince in Agony as the Hot Metal Brands You': Religious Behavior in an Online Role-Playing Game by David Feltmate in Journal of Contemporary Religion

Examining the role of religion in the online, text-based fantasy role-playing game Darkmists, this article explores the factors that could lead to a religion existing exclusively online. Interviews with players and primary sources gathered from the game demonstrate that players create a culture in an online environment where religion is an important social element. Building on Erving Goffman's theory of frame analysis, the ways people use offline perceptions of religion to create online religions are analyzed for their theoretical importance.

Interpreting Islam through the Internet: making sense of hijab by Heather Marie Akou in Contemporary Islam

Hijab, the practice of modesty or "covering," is one of the most visible and controversial aspects of Islam in the twenty-first century, partly because the Qur'an offers so little guidance on proper dress. This forces Muslims to engage in ijtihad (interpretation), which historically has resulted in vast differences in dress around the world. By transcending some of the boundaries of space, time and the body, the Internet has emerged as a place where Muslims from diverse backgrounds can meet to debate ideas and flesh them out through shared experiences. After discussing hijab in the Qur'an and other traditional sources, this article explores the use of cyberspace as a multi-media platform for learning about and debating what constitutes appropriate Islamic dress. The last section focuses on a case study of the multi-user "hijablog" hosted by thecanadianmuslim.ca, which represents one of the largest in-print discussions on hijab ever recorded in the English language. On this blog and other forums like it, ijtihad has become a critical tool for debate on matters such as hijab, which are important but sparsely discussed in the Qur'an.

Religiosity Online: Holy Connections with the Homeland by Filipino Migrants in Japan by Reggy Capacio Figer, Winton Lou G. Ynion in Asian Social Science

Religion is an indelible aspect of Filipino culture.  It has been challenged by different modes of discourses and has resulted to a variety of sects (kapatiran) and cults (samahan).  In the contemporary dispersion of human capital, Filipinos have been caught in the suspension of the performance of religiosity.  It is on this context that Internet has been utilized to develop significant network connections among Filipinos in diaspora.  This paper seeks to examine the interface between religiosity and the Internet use of Filipino migrants in Japan.  Drawing from the textual analysis of online postings on Timog.com, it is evident that Filipino religiosity is reproduced as a form of long-distance ritual practice and cyber pilgrimage.  Through the interchange of affective subscription to one's religion, Filipinos develop connections among online migrants and with the sacred homelan

New Thoughts on the Status of the Religious Cyborg by Paul Emerson Teusner in Journal of Technology, Theology, and Religion