Religious Communities and Social Media in North Macedonia: Between Digital Presence and Online Engagement

Religious communities increasingly operate within digital environments where institutional communication, religious practice, and audience interaction intersect. Yet, establishing a presence on social media does not necessarily translate into meaningful engagement or dialogue. This study examines how the principal religious communities in North Macedonia use social media platforms and how their institutional communication practices are reflected in the digital public sphere. Drawing on an exploratory qualitative content analysis conducted between January and June 2025, this research examines institutional and institutionally associated Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube accounts of the principal religious communities in the country while considering selected smaller communities where relevant. The analysis focuses on platform presence, posting practices, types of content, language use, multimedia formats, institutional organization, and patterns of interaction with followers. The findings reveal substantial differences in the visibility, intensity, and sophistication of digital communication across religious communities. However, despite greater use of multimedia, multilingual communication, and more frequent posting among some actors, communication remains predominantly oriented toward dissemination rather than sustained dialogue. More interactive practices are observed mainly in youth-oriented and community-focused accounts. This study argues that digital presence, dissemination, engagement, and dialogue should be understood as distinct but overlapping dimensions of institutional religious communication. It also contributes to the study of digital religion by examining these dynamics in a religiously plural Southeast European context.