Techno-Religion as a Social Fiction of the Sacred: the Substitution of Transcendent Orientation by Algorithmic Engagement in the Digital Environment

Abstract

From the standpoint of social philosophy, the phenomenon of techno-religion is examined as a quasi-religious form of consciousness in which technological systems acquire a symbolic status of the sacred unsupported by religious tradition or institutional continuity. The aim of the study is to identify the mechanisms by which transcendent orientation is substituted by algorithmically managed engagement in the digital environment. The methodological basis includes socio-philosophical analysis, a phenomenological approach to the sacred, and an interpretation of the mediatization of religion. The theoretical framework draws on the ideas of M. Heidegger, J. Baudrillard, R. Otto, P. Bourdieu, J. Habermas, and S. Hjarvard. It is shown that techno-religion functions as a social fiction: digital platforms appropriate the functions of meaning orientation, value legitimation, and the organization of symbolic community, yet fail to provide an ontological encounter with the Other. Religious influencers, virtual formats of religious participation, and GPTheology are considered not as independent religious forms, but as situations in which the risk of technological prelest (spiritual self-delusion) manifests itself. Based on empirical data from the USA, Russia, and international surveys, a contradiction is revealed between normative distrust of the digitalization of the sacred and the actual use of platforms in religious communication. It is concluded that techno-religion does not directly replace traditional religion, but rather simulates its social functions in a mediatized environment. Within the disciplinary framework, the social mechanisms of producing sacred status, symbolic power, and digital mediation in trust relations are analyzed. This perspective makes it possible to show why religious material serves here as an empirical domain for socio-philosophical analysis.