Sociology of Religion. Describes the origins of the sociology of religion. Demystifies secularization as a process and a theory. Relates religion to modern social theory. Unpacks the meaning of religion in relation to modernity and globalization

I can understand God creating and sustaining everything: the rivers and the mountains; the plants and the trees; the birds and the animals. But where was the need for humans in their midst ? - vpr

The liberation of the human mind has never been furthered by dunderheads; it has been furthered by gay fellows who heaved dead cats into sanctuaries and then went roistering down the highways of the world, proving to all men that doubt, after all, was safe - that the god in the sanctuary was finite in his power and hence a fraud. -H L Mencken

Decency is veiled from sight; indecency is exposed to view. Scenes of evil attract packed audiences; good words scaredly find any listeners. It is as if purity should provoke a blush, and corruption give ground for pride. But where else should this happen but in devils' temples, in the resorts of delusion? -St.Augustine

If we take in our hand any volume of divinity or school metaphysics, for instance, let us ask, does it contain any abstract reasoning concerning quantity or number? No. Does it contain any experimental reasoning concerning matter of fact and existence? No. Commit it then to the flames, for it can contain nothing but sophistry and illusion. -David Hume

Since its inception, presumably dated in the classical period of Durkheim and Weber, the sociology of religion has been fascinated by the phenomenon of secularization. This term, of course, has been endlessly debated, modified and occasionally repudiated.

But for most purposes it could be defined quite simply as a process in which religion diminishes in importance both in society and in the consciousness of individuals. And most sociologists looking at this phenomenon have shared the view that secularization is the direct result of modernization - Peter L. Berger

Religious groups enjoy an organizational and systemic link to other conduits of power in a society (government, education, mass media), and make observance a necessary component of prestige.

In this context it is understandable that every U.S. President since Eisenhower has attended church, and most have self-identified as born-again Christians.

If God really existed, it would be necessary to abolish him.- Mikhail Bakunin, God and the State (1882), in seeming response to Voltaire's "If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him."

The fact that a believer is happier than a sceptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one. The happiness of credulity (disposition to believe on weak or insufficient grounds) is a cheap and dangerous quality. -George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) in Preface to Androcles and the Lion

The foundation for belief or religion is fear and hope, the fear of here and hereafter, not love or reason. The rich fear the prospect of losing what they have, and the poor hope to gain. - vpr

The Council of Societies for the Study of Religion is a federation of learned societies in the field of religious studies. Individuals do not join the Council directly, but apply for membership in one of the Council's constituent societies. The societies seek to further scholarship, research, and teaching in their particular areas and concern themselves with the needs and interests of their members. - cssr.org/about.htm

American Religion Data Archive - free resource available to researchers interested in quantitative data on American religion. - arda.tm/

Center presents its projects in this area. Find an introduction to the field, lists of scientists, articles, research resources, and a bibliography.

General American Religion Resources (Northwest Missouri State Unversity) abacon.com/sociology/soclinks/religion.html

Bulgarian Academy of Sciences: Institute of Sociology - Department of Sociology of Religion and Everyday Life

The mechanisms by which religions propagate and maintain themselves within society

Sociology and Religion: Which theory would say... Religion dulls people to the reality of class conflict... Religion should be studied for the things it does for the cohesion of society... qvctc.commnet.edu/brian/soc/tsld042.htm

Sociological aspects of religion and the impact of religion on the individual and society, cohesion and control, commonly shared beliefs and rituals, the sacred, and the supernatural. sociology.about.com/cs/religion

Taoism Information Page (Including classic texts) - clas.ufl.edu/users/gthursby/taoism/

The Sociology of Religion - BSA New Horizons in Sociology - Book by Grace Davie (Author) May 18, 2007
Why is religion still important? Can we be fully modern and fully religious? Describes the origins of the sociology of religion

Materialising Religion - Expression Performance And Ritual - Theology and Religion in Interdisciplinary Perspective Series Sep 2006. The Bsa Sociology of Religion Study Group)
Book by Elisabeth Arweck (Editor), William Keenan (Editor)

Religion in Society - A Sociology of Religion - (8th Edition) Book by Ronald L. Johnstone (Author) Feb 15, 2006
Puts religion in its social context by discussing the impact of society on religion while helping readers understand the role and function of religion in society that occur regardless of anyone's claims about the truth or falsity of religious systems.

Religion In A Global Society - Book by Peter Beyer (Author)
Peter Beyer is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Ottawa. His previous books include Religion and Globalisation (1994) and Religion and the Process of Globalisation (2001).

Weber And The Persistence Of Religion - Social Theory, Capitalism & The Sublime
(Routledge Advances in Sociology S.)
Book by Joseph W. H. Lough (Author)
It signals a major change in how social scientists are beginning to interpret capitalism, religion and growing public hostility against secular society.

Reading Religion in Text And Context - Reflections of Faith And Practice in Religious Materials
(Theology and Religion in Interdisciplinary Perspective ... the Bsa Sociology of Religion Study Group.) Book by Elisabeth Arweck (Editor), Peter Collins (Editor)

Handbook of the Sociology of Religion by Michele Dillon (Editor) - August 18, 2003 Michele Dillon has done sociology of religion a great service by bringing together many of its most distinguished and promising practitioners to address the field at large according to their special competencies and interests. Religion is a critical construct for understanding contemporary social life. This handbook showcases current research and thinking in the sociology of religion.

Sociology of Religion - A Reader - Book by Susanne C. Monahan (Author), William A. Mirola (Author), Michael O. Emerson (Author)
This collection of articles explores the relationship between the structure and culture of religion and various aspects of social life in the United States. Based on both classic and contemporary research in the sociology of religion. Classic Sociological Definitions Of Religion; Belief And Ritual; Religious Experience; Race, Ethnicity And Religion; Gender And Religion; Social Class And Religion; Sexual Identity And Religion; The Secularization Debate; Religious Organizations, Institutions And Authority; Alternative Religions; Media And Religion; Politics And Religion; Science And Religion; Social Movements And Religion. For anyone interested in the sociology of religion or religious perspectives on social issues.

The Sociology of Religion by Max Weber Book by Ann Swidler (Foreword), Ephraim Fischoff (Translator) Weber's "Sociology of Religion" provides a glimpse of early 20th century sociological methodology

The Sociology of Religion - Theoretical and Comparative Perspectives - Book by Malcol Hamilton (Author)
An expanded second edition, this clear and comprehensive introduction to the sociology of religion incorporates the ideas of the main theorists with a wide range of material that illustrates the large expanse of religious beliefs and practices. The Sociology of Religion encompasses both classic and contemporary theories to present a full picture of the variety and span of theoretical perspectives. His other works include Sociology and the World's Religions and Democratic Socialism in Britain and Sweden.

The Blackwell Companion to Sociology of Religion - Book by Richard K. Fenn (Editor)
Edited by one of the best known and most widely respected sociologists of religion, provides essential reading for sociologists and religion scholars. The Blackwell Companion to Sociology of Religion is presented in three comprehensive parts.

Sociology and the Worlds Religions - Book by Malcolm B. Hamilton (Author)
Sociological and related studies of systems of religion tend to be fragmented. Assesses a diverse range of substantive sociological, anthropological and social-psychological scholarship dealing with the broad spectrum of religious belief, experience and behavior from the work of anthropologists on the religions of tribal and pre-industrial peoples to explorations of the origins, development and impact of the great world religions.

Sociology of Religion - Contemporary Developments - Book by Christiano Kevin J. (Author)
Sociology of Religion: Contemporary Developments charts changes in the sociology of religion without ignoring the continuing relevance of Weber, Durkheim, and Marx. Veteran sociologists Christiano, Swatos, and Kivisto address both the foundations and the profound changes in the field, placing new conceptions against their historical background.

Religion and Everyday Life - Book by Stephen Hunt (Author)
Religion and Everyday Life explores the historical and contemporary relevance of religion to social life through an examination of practice and belief. Individual chapters cover a range of issues, such as: religion, identity, and community; secularization and pluralism; traditional Christianity: change and continuity; globalization and the global context; and religion and ethnicity.

Religion in the Contemporary World - A Sociological Introduction - Book by Alan Aldridge (Author)
The founders of sociology thought that religion and magic were being replaced by science and technology. Some, such as Marx, saw this as a liberation. Others, including Comte, invented substitute religions, none of which has survived. Today many sociologists believe religion has lost social significance. Yet current affairs and everyday experience provide evidence of religion's continuing importance. The book examines the resurgence of fundamentalism in Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

Handbook of Religion and Social Institutions - Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research
Book by Helen Rose Ebaugh (Editor)
Handbook for Religion and Social Institutions is written for sociologists who study a variety of sub-disciplines and are interested in recent studies and theoretical approaches that relate religious variables to their particular area of interest. Religion as a Social Institution and in a Global Perspective

A Comparative Sociology of World Religions - Virtuosi, Priests, and Popular Religion
Book by Stephen Sharot (Author)
This ambitious project is the first to offer a comparison of the popular, or folk, forms of religion around the world. Sharot's accessible introductions to each of the world religions, synthesizing a vast literature on popular religion from sociology, anthropology, and historians of religion, make the project ideal for course use. His comparative approach and original analyses will prove rewarding even for experts on each of the world religions.

Religion and Family in a Changing Society - Princeton Studies in Cultural Sociology
Book by Penny Edgell (Author)
Sally K. Gallagher Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion: This book is a significant contribution to the contemporary discussion about the relation of family to religious institutions in the United States. It corrects several misunderstandings and clarifies a number of ambiguities about the religion-family link. It also displays a sophisticated social-science methodology and makes important theoretical contributions to both social theory and the sociology of religion.

Islam and the Integration of Society - International Library of Sociology F: The Sociology of Religion (International Library of Sociology) (Hardcover)
Book by Montgomery Watt (Author)