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Sociology of Religion

Contemporary Developments, Fourth Edition

Kevin J. Christiano; Peter Kivisto and William H. Swatos, Jr.

Sociology of Religion, Fourth Edition, introduces students to key principles in the sociological understanding of religion. It offers an overview of the nature and function of religious institutions and practices, asking sociological questions about the changing role of religion in today’s “post-traditional” world. After an introduction to the many facets of religion and key theories for its study, the book examines central themes such as changes in religious life in the United States; the intersections between religion, social class, and power and between gender, sexuality, and religion; globalization and religion; religion in mass media; and more.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 408 • Trim: 7 x 10

978-1-5381-3797-0 • Hardback • April 2025 • $160.00 • (£123.00)

978-1-5381-3798-7 • Paperback • April 2025 • $78.00 • (£60.00)

978-1-5381-3799-4 • eBook • April 2025 • $74.00 • (£57.00) (coming soon)

Subjects: Social Science / Sociology of Religion

Courses: Sociology; Institutions; Sociology of Religion

Sociology of Religion

Contemporary Developments, Fourth Edition

Hardback

Paperback

Summary

Sociology of Religion, Fourth Edition, introduces students to key principles in the sociological understanding of religion. It offers an overview of the nature and function of religious institutions and practices, asking sociological questions about the changing role of religion in today’s “post-traditional” world. After an introduction to the many facets of religion and key theories for its study, the book examines central themes such as changes in religious life in the United States; the intersections between religion, social class, and power and between gender, sexuality, and religion; globalization and religion; religion in mass media; and more.

Details

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 408 • Trim: 7 x 10

978-1-5381-3797-0 • Hardback • April 2025 • $160.00 • (£123.00)

978-1-5381-3798-7 • Paperback • April 2025 • $78.00 • (£60.00)

978-1-5381-3799-4 • eBook • April 2025 • $74.00 • (£57.00) (coming soon)

Subjects: Social Science / Sociology of Religion

Courses: Sociology; Institutions; Sociology of Religion

Author

Kevin J. Christiano is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana and a past president of the Association for the Sociology of Religion and the American Council for Québec Studies.

Peter Kivisto is the Richard A. Swanson Professor of Social Thought at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, and a research fellow at the Università di Trento in Italy. An author or editor of more than twenty-five books, he is a member of the Council of the American Sociological Association.

William H. Swatos, Jr., served as the executive officer of the Association for the Sociology of Religion and of the Religious Research Association for many years. He is senior priest and Canon Theologian of the Anglican diocese of Quincy, Illinois.

Table of Contents

About Us
About the Book
Part One: The Basics
1. By Way of Introduction
Background
The Definitional Problem
Exploring the Dimensions of Religion
Social Relationships
Ethical Considerations
A Definitional Revision
The Plan of the Book
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Studying Religion
Why Study Religion?
How Do We Study Religion?
Survey Research
Participant Observation
Historical Research
Theory in the Study of Religion
Functionalist Theories
Conflict Theories
A Paradigm Shift
Rational Choice Theories
Sociologie Religieuse
Implicit Religion
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. The “Religion” of Secularization and the History of Religions
The “World” of Religion
The Arguments
The Critique
The “Religions” of Secularization
Civil Religion
Invisible Religion
The Myth of the Age of Faith
Pluralism
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Religion in the United States: Denominationalism and Beyond
Churches and Sects
Weber’s Sociology and Troeltsch’s Ethics
Elaboration, Reaction, and Revision
Neo-Weberian Analyses
Denominationalism
Typology
Denominations Today
Congregationalism
American Religious Renewal
Mainlines and Sidelines in Religion in the United States
Evangelicals and Fundamentalists: Alike and Different
Suggestions for Further Reading
Part Two: Religion and Social Differentiation
1. Social Class, Religion and Power: A Classic Field of Inquiry
Sociological Classics
Marx: The Permanent Exile and Prophet
Weber: Theodicy, Religious Ethics, and Social Class
Religion and the U.S. Class Structure
U.S. Classes and Religion in the Industrial Age: 1870–1970
The Class/Religion Nexus in the Neo-Liberal Era: 1970–
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Religion and Ethnicity: A Complex Relationship
Clarifying Terms: Ethnic, Nationality, and Racial Groups
Defining Ethnic Groups
Nationality Groups and Territoriality
The Specter of Race
Relational Patterns between Religion and Ethnicity
Ethnicity in the “Righteous Empire”
The Ethnic Factor in the Formative Period of U.S. Catholicism
The Jewish Diaspora
Herberg’s Thesis and the “Triple Melting Pot”
The African-American Religious Experience
From Different Shores: The New Immigrants
The New Ethnics as Protestants, Catholics, and Jews
Beyond Protestant, Catholic, Jew
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Gender, Sexuality, and Religion: Spirituality in Different Voices?
The Ordination Debate
Women in Clerical and Lay Roles
Culture Wars: Gender, Religion, and Family Values
Abortion and the Politics of the Body
Family Matters
Gays, Lesbians, and Religion
Images of God and Gendered Spirituality
Suggestions for Further Reading
Part Three: Religion, Culture, and Change
1. Religious Change: The Case of Catholicism in the United States
Church with a Capital C
Change: From Breeze to Tornado
Commitment: Loyalty, but Not Obedience
Devotion: A Collapse of Authority
Governance: Guiding the People of God
Leadership: Failures at the Top
Membership: Problems in the Pews
African-American Catholics
Hispanic / Latino Catholics
Women in the Church
Personnel: People without Priests
Finances: Expanding Mission, Declining Resources
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Politicized Religion and Conflict: National and Global Dimensions
Fundamentalism
The Religious Right in the United States
Islamization
Ultraorthodox Judaism
Hindutva: Hindu Nationalism
Militant Buddhism in Sri Lanka
Conclusion
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Mediating Meaning: Religion in—and as—Contemporary Culture
Mass Faith: The Media of Religion
Religion in Material Culture: Faith in the Flesh
Religious Publishing: Words and The Word
“That Old-Time Religion”: Broadcast Faith in the United States
“In the Beginning . . .”
The Message: “His Master’s Voice”?
The Messengers: The Return of Elmer Gantry?
The Audience: Preaching to the Converted?
Cyber-Faith: Religion on the Internet
Suggestions for Further Reading
1. Boundary Issues: Church, State, and New Religions
Religious Novelty
Cult and Anticult: Social Science and Social Movements
Asceticism and Mysticism
The Attraction of the Margin
Illustrations of NRM Dynamics
Unificationism (with Eileen Barker)
“Satanism” and Anti-Satanism
Neopaganism: Of Gods and Goddesses
Suggestions for Further Reading
References
Index

Features

New:

More "chunking" of narrative

Boxes will be categorized/named

Running Glossary

EOC: Summary and Critical Thinking Questions

EOB: Glossary

Instructor's Manual with Test Bank

Resources

FOR STUDENTS
Accompanying the text is an open-access Companion Website designed to reinforce the main topics and help you master key vocabulary and concepts through flashcards and self-graded quizzes.
FOR PROFESSORS
Ancillary Materials are available for this title. For access to these professor use only materials, please Sign-In if you are a registered user, or Register then email us at textbooks@rowman.com

Test Bank. The Test Bank includes a variety of test questions and is available in either Word or PDF formats. For every chapter in the text, the Test Bank includes a complete test with a variety of question types, including multiple choice, true false, and essay formats.

To use our Test Bank in Word or PDF, please Sign-In if you are a registered user, or Register then email us at textbooks@rowman.com

Sociology of Religion

Contemporary Developments, Fourth Edition

Kevin J. Christiano; Peter Kivisto and William H. Swatos, Jr.

Sociology of Religion

Contemporary Developments, Fourth Edition

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