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"Acts of Faith is the single 'big book' in the sociology of religion in the past decade, a monumental effort that both demolishes old theories and creates brilliant new ones. Stark and Finke have mastered the literature in the field, gathered ingenious data analysis to sustain their positions, and presented their work with flair, imagination, and brilliance. Though it is quite impossible to turn around the social science profession completely with a single book, or indeed within a single decade, these two authors have achieved a powerful beginning in this task. This landmark publication marks a turning point."—Andrew M. Greeley, University of Chicago
"This book is a major next step in developing the sociology of religion's 'new paradigm'--an important summary of the evolving 'religious economies' theory. Stark and Finke's spirited deconstruction of antireligious secularization theories and other theories of 'irrational' religion is simply delightful. And its own constructive theory offers a valuable resource for those friendly to the rational choice approach to religion, as well as a continuing challenge to its critics."—Christian Smith, University of North Carolina
List of contents
Introduction: Atheism, Faith, and the Social Scientific Study of Religion
PART ONE • PARADIGMS IN CONFLICT
1. A New Look at Old Issues
2. Rationality and the “Religious Mind”
3. Secularization, R.I.P.
PART TWO • THE RELIGIOUS INDIVIDUAL
4. The Micro Foundations of Religion
5. Religious Choices: Conversion and Reaffiliation
PART THREE • THE RELIGIOUS GROUP
6. Religious Group Dynamics
7. Catholic Religious Vocations: Decline and Revival
PART FOUR • THE RELIGIOUS ECONOMY
8. A Theoretical Model of Religious Economies
9. Religious Competition and Commitment: An International Assessment
10. Church-to-Sect Movements
Appendix: Propositions and Definitions
Notes
References
Index
About the author
Rodney Stark is Professor of Sociology and Comparative Religion at the University of Washington. Among his many books are The Rise of Christianity (1996), The Future of Religion: Secularization, Revival, and Cult Formation (California, 1985), and, with Roger Finke, The Churching of America, 1776-1990: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy (1992). Roger Finke is Professor of Sociology at Pennsylvania State University.
Summary
This is an analysis of the observable, human side of faith. The text combines theorizing with discussion as it moves from considering the religiousness of individuals to the dynamics of religious groups to the workings of entire societies as religious groups contend for support.
