The Role of Cyberspace in Religious Dialog between Muslim Minority and Non-Muslim Majority in the Czech Republic

Abstract

The article is focused on Czech Muslim community and its efforts to educate, to raise public awareness and to create a dialog with Czech majority population using the internet, social networks and other modern cybernetic ways and tools. Special attention is put on Shia community in South Moravia region of Czech Republic and its recently opened Muslim Cultural Center Ahlulbayt followed by Facebook campaign and electronic media coverage. In the background of current so called migration crisis in Europe there is a huge impact of cyberspace on public opinion formed by anti-Islamic movements on one side and pro-refugees activists on the other. In Czech Republic, a state almost untouched by migration wave and with small Muslim community, the issue of Islam in Europe and its coexistence with Christian / atheist domestic population has become an important political topic. Islamic organizations face much pressure and responsibility for introducing their religious and political orientation. Cyberspace, the internet and social networks are highly effective option to distribute information and statements or to communicate with outside world with low costs and high impact. Analyzing these channels and their effectivity within Czech environment is one of the main aim of the article.