Malaise in the Sociology of Religion: A Prescription
The future of the sociological study of religion is of less interest than the future of modern societies. Though the sociology of religion may be marginal to the discipline as a whole, its salvation does not lie in abandoment of the classics but, rather, in reconsideration of some of the original pr...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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| Published: |
1985
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| In: |
Sociological analysis
Year: 1985, Volume: 46, Issue: 4, Pages: 401-414 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The future of the sociological study of religion is of less interest than the future of modern societies. Though the sociology of religion may be marginal to the discipline as a whole, its salvation does not lie in abandoment of the classics but, rather, in reconsideration of some of the original problems posed by the sociological “masters”. Re-opening these old debates involves the problematic of the state as a form of domination and it may be useful to view the state from the standpoint of classical anarchism. Perception of the state as problematic and moribund in a secular society entails adoption of a “minimalist” position that questions all forms of social obligation beyond the most immediate, temporary and specific. Revival of the anarchist program challenges sociology to consider the possibility of a society based on minimal obligation i.e. to envisage a wholly secularized social system based only on the most immediate, temporary and specific forms of authority. Radical analysis of the “cult of authority” appears to offer sociolgists their best opportunity for clarifying the nature of religion and the meaning of secularization. |
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| ISSN: | 2325-7873 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Sociological analysis
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/3711156 |