Digital Powers and Principalities, Decolonization, and Faith-Based Activism

Abstract

This article investigates the technological environments of faith-based digital activism, looking beyond immediate practices to the structures that shape them. Adopting the theological framework of “powers and principalities,” I argue that digital spaces are value-laden environments shaped by forces that are often intangible yet deeply felt. By putting Walter Wink’s concept of an “integral worldview” in conversation with indigenous theologies, the article develops a conceptual vocabulary to account for the spiritual dimensions of technological life.

Suggesting that digital technologies invite quasi-enchanted readings, I consider how these “powers” manifest within the design and systems of digital platforms to represent new forms of empire-building and epistemic colonization. In response I draw upon Kwok Pui-lan’s call, “postcolonial imagination” as a framework to develop practices that resist and subvert these colonial dynamics. Ultimately, I argue that faith-based activism must critically address the structural realities of its digital engagement.

I conclude by proposing four practices—cultivating technopolitical awareness, challenging knowledge hegemonies, fostering transnational listening, and strategic re-engagement—to help “bend” digital Powers toward liberative ends.