Sociology in Theology

Sociology has taken a recent and unexpected theological turn that has radical implications for reflexivity. This original study explores these in four areas: visual aspects of reflexivity and theology; Simmel and Mauss on prayer as a form of spiritual capital; identity and the constitution of character; and finally, and most controversially, a reflection on sociological expectations of theology. This is one of the few works that explores a new terrain with profound implications for sociology and theology.

KIERAN FLANAGAN is Reader in Sociology at the University of Bristol. His publications include: Seen and Unseen, Sociology and Liturgy: Re-presentations of the Holy; and The Enchantment of Sociology: A Study of Theology and Culture. He has co-edited with Peter C. Jupp: Postmodernity, Sociology and Religion; and Virtue Ethics and Sociology: Issues of Modernity and Religion.

Introduction * Molly Sweeney and the Blind Sociologist: A Failure of Visual Expectations * Prayer: Sociology’s Semi-Detached Concept * Sociology and Charater: A Disciplinary Black Hole * ‘Good’ Sociology and ‘Bad’ Theology: Who Discerns the Spirit of the Times? * Conclusion * Bibliography * Index