Sacred Journeys in Digital Islam
Ageing, Pilgrimage, and the Ethics of the Digital Divide
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22431387 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Abdul Basit Zafar (0000-0003-0840-5865, University of Bonn, corresponding author), Geneva Catherine Blackmer (0009-0000-5038-7889, University of Cambridge) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue | 7 |
| Pages | 836 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-14 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel17070836 |
| OpenAlex | W7168253283 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 28 |
This article examines how pilgrimage to sacred sites is being reconfigured through digital navigation systems and how these transformations intersect with the digital literacy challenges faced by ageing pilgrims. Situating the study within broader discussions on digital religion and pilgrimage, it explores how access to holy spaces is increasingly mediated by platforms that regulate verification, mobility, and ritual logistics prior to physical arrival. Focusing on Nusuk as a case study, the article examines Saudi Arabia’s official digital platform for Hajj and Umrah services at the holiest sites of Islam, through which pilgrims access registration, package selection, permits, booking, payment, guidance, transportation coordination, and various related pilgrimage services. The article draws on interdisciplinary analysis of existing research on pilgrimage, digital Islam and the larger digital divide. It argues that contemporary pilgrimage now begins within digitally governed environments, where participation depends on the ability to navigate interfaces, authentication systems, and algorithmic processes. While these technologies are framed as enhancing efficiency and safety, they simultaneously presuppose forms of access, literacy, and adaptability that many older pilgrims do not hold, thereby producing new dependencies and, in some cases, barriers to active participation. The study demonstrates that digital mediation reshapes both agency and sacred space, transitioning authority from embodied and communal practices to device-based guidance and automated systems. It concludes that contemporary holy cities must be understood as ethical infrastructures in which questions of access, care, and inclusion are central and proposes a “digital theology of pilgrimage” and ageing that calls for greater responsibility among religious institutions, communities, and platform designers to address the digital divide.
Agency (philosophy) · Cyberspace · Digital divide · Empowerment · Hajj · Islam · Mediation · Pilgrimage · Halal products and consumer behavior · Media, Religion, Digital Communication · Religious Tourism and Spaces
| Highly cited | No |
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