Sociology of Religion: A Rodney Stark Reader, Stark Rodney, Wei Dedong, Zhong Zhifeng

For the last five decades, Rodney Stark has been one of sociologys most prolific and important scholars of religion. The theoretical depth, the scientific rigor, and the clarity of style manifested in Starks oeuvre--over 30 books and 140 articles--have made his work the standard texts. Starks research career encompasses a wide spectrum of the necessary topics in sociology of religion. He has applied groundbreaking theory and method to issues of secularization, religion and society, religious movements, social theory, and the history of religion.

Sociology of Religion: A Rodney Stark Reader mirrors Starks influential career by highlighting these very topics. In this anthology, Starks significant articles are not only, for the first time, collected together but also clearly organized according to the thematic trajectory of Starks carefully developed theory of religion. This volume is the essential reader for any scholar, teacher, or student encountering the work of one of this centurys most compelling sociologists.