Sociology of Religion References & Bibliography
Sociology of Religion Bibliography Books Papers   Details of Models Limited Enthusiasm  Births, Deaths & Reversion    Details of Results Summary of Results Short Term Revival  Long Term Growth Long Term Decline   References & Bibliography  Mathematics of Church Growth Church Growth  Revival  System Dynamics  Sociology of Religion Epidemics  Social Diffusion Publications Articles	Books The book by Kelley proved controversial in sociology of religion and has sparked off much work to prove or disprove the thesis. That thesis is that conservative churches are strong and hence grow. The works by Berger and Wallace represent the older paradigm of sociology of religion, embracing secularisation theory - that as society advances religion becomes less important. The works by Stark are representative of the new paradigm which seeks to understand why religion succeeds even in "advanced" countries. Berger P. (1969), The Sacred Canopy: Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion, Anchor NY. Berger P. (1970), A Rumour of Angels: Modern Society and the Rediscovery of the Supernatural, Anchor NY. Fink R. and Stark R. (1992), The Churching of America 1776-1990: Winners and Losers in our Religious Economy, Rutgers University Press. Kelley D. (1986), Why Conservative Churches are Growing: A Study in the Sociology of Religion. Mercer University Press. Stark R. (1996), The Rise of Christianity, Princeton University Press. Stark R and Bainbridge W.S. (1987), Theory of Religion, Rutgers University Press. Stark R. and Bainbridge W.S. (1985), The Future of Religion, University of California Press. Wallace A.F.C. (1966), Religion: An Anthropological View, New York Random House. Papers The paper by Inskeep gives an account of the two strands of church growth: the academic side relying on sociology; and the practitioners side pursued within the churches for their own advancement. The paper by Warner spells out the new paradigm in the sociology of religion taking it away from secularisation theory. Iannaccone L.R. (1992) Religious Markets and the Economics of Religion, Social Compass, 39 (1), 123-131. Iannaccone L.R. (1994), Why Strict Churches are Strong, American Journal of Sociology, 99(5), 1180-1211. Iannaccone L.R., Olson P. and Stark R. (1995), Religious Resources and Church Growth, Social Forces, Vol 74(2), 705-731. Inskeep K.W. (1993), A Short History of Church Growth Research, in "Church and Denominational Growth'', edited by Roozen D.A. and Hadaway C.K., (1993), 135-148. Olson D.V.A. (1989), Church Friendships: Boon or Barrier to Church Growth?, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 28(4), 432-447. Stark R. and Iannaccone L.R. (1994), A Supply Side Re-Interpretation of the ``Secularisation'' of Europe. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 33 (3), 230-252. Warner R.S. (1993), Work in Progress toward a New Paradigm for the Sociological Study of Religion in the United States, American Journal of Sociology 98 (5), 1044-93. Return to Top