Uses and Gratifications of a Spanish Digital Prayer Project: Rezandovoy

This article aims to make a contribution, from a sociological and communication sciences perspective, to our understanding of religion in digital media. The results of a case study on Rezandovoy, a Jesuit digital prayer service, are set out here. The service was created in Valladolid (Spain) in 2011 and it is used by 40,000 Spanish-speakers from around the world daily. The theoretical framework used in the study is the paradigm of uses and gratifications, a consolidated framework in mass media research that is also applied to new digital media. This theoretical framework helps to explain the reasons why believers from all over the world use digital media in relation to their faith. In the current case study, through a methodology consisting of focus groups, interviews and virtual ethnography, we conclude that there are a variety of gratifications that encourage users to utilise Rezandovoy. By taking into account what the users themselves say about the satisfactions they obtain from the service, six categories of gratifications are defined: "Spiritual", "Prayer School", "Guidance", "Social Utility", "Diversion" and "Emotional"