The Insulation and Isolation of the Sociology of Religion
Richard Fenn's view that the sociology of religion faces a methodological and epistemological crisis due to the alleged necessity to separate myth from reality is criticized for concealing the fact that (a) all sociological specialisms confront the same order of problem; (b) some of the sociolo...
| Published in: | Sociological analysis |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
1985
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| In: |
Sociological analysis
Year: 1985, Volume: 46, Issue: 4, Pages: 347-354 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Richard Fenn's view that the sociology of religion faces a methodological and epistemological crisis due to the alleged necessity to separate myth from reality is criticized for concealing the fact that (a) all sociological specialisms confront the same order of problem; (b) some of the sociology of religion's hallowed concepts and problematics have been more serious impediments to its development in the recent past; and (c) the distinctive institutionalization of the sociology of religion as a subdiscipline has ironically contributed both to its past successes and to its present difficulties. The social processes of insulation and isolation are shown to have canalized the sociology of religion in a way which ensures its continuing marginality to the concerns of most sociologists. The fact that some sociological conceptualizations of religion have been coopted by religious actors and by agents of religious change has done little to check these processes. The conclusion proposes a programme of work which will demonstrate (a) the failure of mainstream sociology to take adequate account of religion and (b) the continuing, but changing, capacity of religion to influence social life in distinctive ways. |
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| ISSN: | 2325-7873 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Sociological analysis
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/3711150 |