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).
Finke, Roger : Pennsylvania State University
Roger Finke is Professor of Sociology at Pennsylvania State University.
Review
"crucial exposition in an increasingly combative dispute about method in the sociology of religion."
--Times Literary Supplement
"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
University of California Press Web Site, March, 2002
Summary
Finally, social scientists have begun to attempt to understand religious behavior rather than to discredit it
as irrational, ignorant, or foolish--and Rodney Stark and Roger Finke have played a major role in this new approach.
Acknowledging that science cannot assess the supernatural side of religion (and therefore should not claim to do
so), Stark and Finke analyze the observable, human side of faith. In clear and engaging prose, the authors combine
explicit theorizing with animated discussions as they move from considering the religiousness of individuals to
the dynamics of religious groups and then to the religious workings of entire societies as religious groups contend
for support. The result is a comprehensive new paradigm for the social-scientific study of religion.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Atheism, Faith, and the Social Scientific Study of Religion
p. 1
Paradigms in Conflict
A New Look at Old Issues
p. 27
Rationality and the "Religious Mind"
p. 42
Secularization, R.I.P.
p. 57
The Religious Individual
The Micro Foundations of Religion
p. 83
Religious Choices: Conversion and Reaffiliation
p. 114
The Religious Group
Religious Group Dynamics
p. 141
Catholic Religious Vocations: Decline and Revival
p. 169
The Religious Economy
A Theoretical Model of Religious Economies
p. 193
Religious Competition and Commitment: An International Assessment
p. 218
Church-to-Sect Movements
p. 259
Appendix: Propositions and Definitions
p. 277
Notes
p. 287
References
p. 295
Index
p. 325
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.