The Sociology of Religion

GRACE DAVIE is professor emeritus in the Sociology of Religion at the University of Exeter UK  She is a past-president of the American Association for the Sociology of Religion (2003) and of the Research Committee 22 (Sociology of Religion) of the International Sociological Association (2002-06).     In 2000-01 she was the Kerstin-Hesselgren Professor at Uppsala, where she returned for extended visits in 2006-7, 2010 and 2012, receiving an honorary degree in 2008.  She has also held visiting appointments at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes (1996) and at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (1998 and 2003), both in Paris.  She is a member of the Academia Europaea.      In addition to numerous chapters and articles, she is the author of Religion in Britain since 1945 (Blackwell 1994), Religion in Modern Europe (OUP 2000), Europe: the Exceptional Case (DLT 2002), The Sociology of Religion (Sage 2007/2013) and Religion in Britain: A Persistent Paradox (Wiley-Blackwell 2015); she is the co-author of Religious America, Secular Europe (Ashgate 2008), and co-editor of the Oxford Handbook of Religion and Europe (OUP forthcoming).   Contact details:  G.R.C.Davie@exeter.ac.uk

This new, updated edition offers a reliable introduction to the main ways in which sociology has illuminated religion and religious change. But more than that, it raises profound questions about how religion, and its refusal to die, challenges sociology - a discipline founded on belief in the inevitability of secularisationLinda WoodheadProfessor of Sociology of Religion, Lancaster UniversityGrace Davie′s timely second edition of Sociology of Religion underlines that religion is no longer simply located within the private sphere and is rising in the public agenda. It might be a return of religion. It might also be that religion never left and that there is now a shift in perception that religion is more present in our life. This prompts a need for many disciplines to develop new tools for understanding this new process and/or shift in perception. Grace Davie′s first edition of Sociology of Religion was already a more than a welcome contribution as it provided sociologists and non-sociologists with one of the best books on the topic. This second edition keeps up with the fast and evolving field of religion and provides the most up-to-date findings and theories in the sociology of religion. Needless to say, it is a must read for anyone interested in this field.Adam PossamiAssociate Professor in Sociology, University of Western Sydney, Australia Grace Davie is one of the best analysts of religion in contemporary sociology. The second edition of this title caps a distinguished record of studies of religion - first of Britain, then of Europe, then globally. This is a magisterial work, which should be read by anyone interested in the place of religion in the modern worldPeter L. BergerBoston University, USA "The Sociology of Religion. A Critical Agenda" is perfect for classroom use. Next to offering a well organized, competent and cutting edge overview on the challenges faced by the sociology of religion in our time, it teaches students how to think sociologically. Davie′s insightful and imaginative account triggers new perspectives and research questions with regard to the global presence of religion. A wonderful, multi-layered resource for teaching!Birgit MeyerProfessor of Religious Studies, Utrecht University Grace Davie′s The Sociology of Religion is a highly valuable textbook for students on under graduate as well as graduate levels. It combines a critical reflection on the issues and debates that have shaped the field and a challenging agenda outlining some of the most crucial theoretical and empirical issues for the future. This way it equips students to both explore new tendencies and trends of religion in contemporary society and to be attentive to the significance of history and context for analysing. Mia LövheimProfessor of Sociology of Religion, Faculty of Theology, Uppsala University, Sweden

• Preface to the Second EditionPreface to the First EditionIntroduction: A Critical AgendaPART ONE: THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVESCommon Sources/Different PathwaysSecularization: Process and TheoryRational Choice TheoryModernity: A Single or Plural Construct?Methodological ChallengesPART TWO: SUBSTANTIVE ISSUESMainstream Religions in the Western WorldMinorities and MarginsDemanding Attention: Fundamentalisms in the Modern WorldGlobalization and the Study of ReligionReligion and the EverydayConclusion: Revisiting the Agenda