Actualization of the Ideas of the Toronto School in the Study of Religious Communication

Abstract

The article analyzes the potential of the scientific ideas of the representatives of the Toronto School of Communication Theory for the study of modern religious discourse, the feature of which is the mass character and use of technical means. The work of the school in the second half of the twentieth century, the ideas of its representatives Harold A. Innis, Eric A. Havelock, Dorothy D. Lee, Edmund S. Carpenter, who studied various aspects of communication tools were considered. Particular attention is paid to the philosopher and literary critic Herbert Marshall McLuhan. The main blocks in the scientist's portfolio are allocated, which can be effectively applied for the study of mass religious communication: the change of forms of communication determines the main characteristics of social interaction; mass media are actively influencing the creation of modern culture; the development of electronic media of mass communication leads to a change in society and modern man. A new plane for the analysis of religious mass media is the idea of dominating the means of communication over its content. Radio and television create and shape up-to-date religious communication, which is fundamentally different from the classical forms of religious communication. In general, the author concludes that the ideas of the Toronto School are undeniably relevant in the study of contemporary religious communication. Particularly important is the position on the totality of mass media in relation to the diverse phenomena of modern culture. The idea of ​​domination of the medium of communication over its content is ambiguous, since religious discourse implies the concepts of canonical and sacred text. The conclusion is drawn about the influence of electronic mass media on the construction of social reality, the change in the ways in which information is transmitted in religion, and the modification of religion itself.